The Legends of Chaos
by Valerie G. 2
Summary: PLEASE read my bio... it'll explain everything...
1. Prologue

Prologue   
  
  
  
Never before, in all of their golden heritage, had there been a more magnificent sight...   
  
The recently established, outer main hall of the royal palace was a massive, gothic structure... with a high, curved ceiling; sloping delicately from its center, it flowed downward smoothly- merging seamlessly with the enormous stone pillars- forming an awe-inspiring archway. The passage itself lacked all but basic decorum, not requiring the aesthetic enhancement of the needless, dainty accessories that had come to be synonymous with royal display elsewhere.   
  
This was an empire that had been forged in the heat of battle and with the blood of thousands of loyal warriors... and it would be treated as such. What had been created to honor the memory of the countless fallen soldiers and symbolize the everlasting strength of their people would not be made shameful by frivolous, romantic adornments. There was no need for them anyway, as the edifice was, in itself, already majestic in its simplicity. It held a silent air of distinction that commanded respect from all who darkened its steps and all who did have a chance to witness it's glory humbled themselves in its presence.   
  
Perched low upon each rising column sat a single, small torch, which were all lit, casting a series of intricate shadows and light which flowed and ebbed in a continuous, mesmerizing play across the floor. Interestingly, the curve of the walls also seemed to gather the faint, inadequate glowing of each individual staff, collecting and pooling the warm, golden radiance high up in its wide, consuming space- obviously, an effect that had been meticulously planned out in its construction- creating a steady, gentle illumination.  
  
Undoubtedly, this creation was a work of art... an unquestionable masterpiece in engineering and design. Yet, in all its glory, had another soul been present that night to bear witness to its grandeur, they might have said that the most striking thing was *not* the sprawling expanse of adamantine stone, but the hall's single lovely, occupant...  
  
***  
  
The outer hall slowly began to give way to darkness, the cool evening air growing stiller and warmer as columns of the outside world were replaced with walls the shade of burgundy, indicating that she'd finally reached the inner palace. Idly, she observed how much more imposing the interior halls were than that of which she had just traveled as she continued on, pushing forward into the dimly lit corridors, maneuvering her way expertly through the dusky labyrinth. All of which was easy enough, having worked in here so long, she knew every twist and turn like the back of her hand.   
  
Unconsciously, she let one hand stray up to tuck an imaginary, stray lock of hair behind her ear, as if trying to fix her already flawless appearance.  
  
Her tail tensed around her waist as she walked down the gigantic, elegant, seemingly deserted hallway. Her high-heeled boots clicked lightly on the marble floor as she walked, causing a hollow echo to reverberate throughout the hall.   
  
Thick, raven locks were swept up high upon her head in a simple, yet stunning fall of curls, which came down to the small of her back, helping to enhance the effect of the small black choker about her neck which set off a startling contrast against her pale skin. Her gold-studded leather ensemble fit her like a second skin, shaping itself exactly to her every curve and leaving little to the imagination. The sleeveless top of her bodice came up just inches above the swell of her breasts and flowed downward and flared just above her knees, giving her a very dramatic, seductive air without being openly suggestive. The suit was complimented by a pair of matching armbands, which only served to accent her finely toned muscles. And it was topped off by a delicate, gold V-shaped headband, which rode along her crown and dipped down between her eyes prettily, lending her a deceptive air of dainty femininity.   
  
Her tail twitched and fidgeted unendingly, as if having a mind of its own. She wrapped it around her waist, then unwrapped it and let it swing freely behind her from side to side. Then she stopped swinging it and let it hang behind her loosely. Then she wrapped it around her stomach, then let it slip down to her waist again.  
  
She couldn't help it - she was excited!! - Although, she wouldn't let anyone know it...  
  
When she first found out that she would be trusted with such an important mission, she wasn't very surprised. She was the King's right-hand, part of the Royal Elite! Why should she have not been picked? Not only was she part of the Royal Elite, but she was the Chief Adviser, Head Commander and Lieutenant, Grand Fleet Admiral, and the King's First in Command!! And beyond that point, she was one of the most powerful Super-Saiyans in the universe, if not the strongest one herself. She was a shoe-in.   
  
But for some reason... she felt so pleased, so flattered, so undeserving.  
  
Yes, this was an important mission, but why did she feel that it was so important to her? Of course, this was the Prince; he was an important person! And they had known each other very well, but... she felt like she needed to find him more for herself than for the King...  
  
As she walked down the enormous hall, the diamond-shaped charms which hung from her headband gave off a very soft, pleasant jingle, which somehow managed to soothe some of her wire-tight nerves... not by much, but it did help.   
  
She finally reached her destination, the Main Hall, one of the largest rooms in the entire castle. She planned on meeting Mason there.  
  
Mason was the lieutenant, which was one rank below her. In fact, at this point, there was no one above her rank except for the King himself. Her status was so high that she was the closest thing to being royalty without actually being a blood relative of the Royal Family. She saw him standing in a far corner of the room, looking out of one of the giant, arched windows.  
  
"I expect that the needs of the mission have been met?" *I forgot to mention - this chic has a British accent*   
  
Mason jumped, surprised at the voice. He'd been in deep thought, so he hadn't sensed a presence anywhere near him.   
  
He turned to see her standing right behind him, smirking because of the way he'd been startled.  
"I think you're beginning to lose your touch, Mason."  
  
"Good evening, Commander. ::ahem:: You startled me."  
  
"Well obviously."  
  
"Alright. About the mission - everything is ready. You are welcome to leave whenever you please."  
  
"Good. And I suspect that the King will want to speak with me before I leave?"  
  
"Your suspicions are correct," said Mason. "He is in his quarters waiting for you as we speak."  
  
She nodded and turned on her heel and walked out of the opposite door of the Main Hall. Mason just stood there and watched her walk until she was out of sight.  
  
He closed his eyes, sighed deeply, then said, "I only hope that you don't fail this mission, Clarice... for your own good...."   
  
  
  
* ^_^ ... 0_0 ... __ 


	2. Chapter One: Her Mission

Hey. y'all! How r u? I'm soooooo sorry that this chapter took so long to come out... so I decided to make it really long to make up for the time. Also - for all y'all  
japanese illiterates, I'll be translated the japanese words for you, okay? That should make everyone happy.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Ball Z/GT, but I do own all of the characters I made up, the castle, the planet, all of the inventions that will be coming up, and the big  
event that will take place a lot later in the story...  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter One: Her Mission  
  
  
  
As she walked down the long, paved path to her vessel, she thought about her mission and what she was to do if she in fact *did* find him. Her purpose was to find  
him, alive or dead.... If he was alive, bring him home. If he was dead.... At least find out where and how he had died. If he had been killed, find the   
person(s) that had killed him and show them what would happen to them if they took the life of the Prince of the Saiyans....   
  
  
But then an odd thought occurred to her: What *had* happened to him? The last time she had seen him, he had been setting out on a journey to Anthroxia along  
with Nappa and Raditz. They were going to destroy the inhabitants there, she had been told. She was on another assignment when she had caught wind of a change  
in their plans - Earth. As far as she could gather, something had happened to Raditz on a solo mission and Vegeta had decided to go out and investigate matters. But  
that's as far as she could look into it, as her work sent her all the way to a far away galaxy called M2, where she was needed immediately. That was the last time  
they had seen or heard from each other. After that, she had lost all contact with Vejitasei, and she received word that the planet had been destroyed.   
  
  
That was when she had had made the discovery of the existence of the legendary Black-Star Dragon balls, magical spheres capable of invoking a god that could  
summon the power to grant almost any wish. It was not long afterward that she had embarked on a diligent quest to recover them and wish the planet back, which  
she succeeded in doing with ease, much to her satisfaction.   
  
  
Had he died on Earth...? But... how could that have possibly happened? The habitants of Earth couldn't have possibly - they weren't strong enough, nor did they  
have the cavalry to destroy three saiyajins. And beyond that line of reasoning, the earth had a moon! Oh, she could just picture the carnage when the moon showed  
her full face... They should have much more than virtually indestructible. She estimated that they should have been able to destroy the species there within the space  
of two months.   
  
  
Then she remembered.... Another saiyajin had been sent there, as a child.... She had known his ather. His name was Bardock; he was a loyal soldier in the Saiyajin  
defense force... She had been told that he had been trying to stop Frieza from destroying the planet, but unfortunately had died in the struggle...   
  
  
But she'd found this ubelieiveable - Frieza, destroying Vejitasei? No, it couldn't be tue... She'd known Frieza as a child and as a teen, and she'd even slightly  
befriended him. No, that wasn't right, he couldn't have done it.   
  
  
So there were four saiyajins. And the child alone, whom should have been strong enough of its own accord, should have finished the job alone within three months. It  
should have been a massacre. She grimaced at the thought. She wasn't as much of a ruthless killer as saiyajins went - she could even be considered *nice*, at least  
by saiyajin standards. She would kill if she was ordered to (unless of course, she didn't believe that the person deserved to be killed), or if she had to, or even if she  
wanted to - which wasn't very often - but she wouldn't as much go off and destroy an entire planet. That was just.... Monstrous.   
  
  
Of course, this "soft" way of going about things had gotten her much ridicule from her peers in her time in the lower ranks - heck, it most likely STILL got some  
pretty bad views... the only reason she never heard it said outright anymore was because she was now so high ranking that if anyone dared to question her, they'd  
get discharged or killed for insubordination. And who would want to be disgraced because of a woman? The thought was simply shameful. So, of course, people  
preferred to keep things to themselves... or at least, out of earshot. Not that she really cared what they thought anyhow.  
  
  
She was pulled from her reverie when she saw the huge ship before her. It was very good looking - it was really big, and had a smooth, contoured shape. The top  
front side, which was slightly slanted, had a big, slightly arched window that looked as if it served as a windshield type device. On the top, she knew through  
experience would proudly display (since the side was a bit too thin to show it) the Vejitasei coat of arms. She raised an eyebrow continued walking toward the  
vessel. She saw a few royal officers standing below the ship, which was sitting on the ground. She walked over to one of them, who she knew as Senior Officer  
Dryphus.  
  
"Is there a problem, Officer Dryphus?" she asked, looking around the area.   
  
  
"No, Commander. We're just making a few last-minute verifications," said Dryphus as she observed the rest of the officers. "So... do you think that you'll complete  
this mission?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.  
  
  
"Oh, please don't ask," sighed Clarice. "I've already been through this enough with Vegeta, and I'll just tell you the same thing that I told him - I'll do my best."  
  
  
"What else did he try to *emphasize* upon you?" asked Dryphus, humor clearly in her voice.   
  
  
"Don't ask," repeated Clarice. "...But... he did offer to 'reward' me if I completed the mission successfully..."  
  
  
Dryphus almost laughed at the exasperated look on Clarice's face. "It seems that you're on a first-name basis with him..."  
  
  
Clarice looked at Dryphus with a slightly annoyed expression. "The only reason I called him by his first name was because I don't think that he deserves the honor of  
being called 'Your Highness'..." she grimaced slightly, "More along the lines of 'Your Royal Ass'..."  
  
  
Dryphus laughed out loud at that, but then said, still laughing slighly, "You really musn't speak of our King in such a manner... even if you don't enjoy being under his  
rule, like it or not, we're sworn to follow him... you musn't question his directives."  
  
  
"Oh *shut up*," said Clarice, rolling her eyes playfully. "*Must* you be so submissive..."   
  
  
Dryphus elbowed Clarice in the stomach good-humoredly and then turned to speak to another officer that had jogged over to her.  
  
  
"Alright. I believe you can leave now," said Dryphus when she finished speaking to the other officer. "Everything seems to be in order."  
  
  
She nodded and smiled and began to walk toward the ship, which was now floating above the ground. As soon as she arrived before the entrance (a circular door  
that spun open), a walkway protruded from it as if on command. She moved up the walkway and the automatic door slid open as she appeared before them. She  
strode into the main room of the vessel and took in the ambience. After looking around a bit, she strode towards the opposite side of the ship (which took a while,  
considering the size of the ship) and stood before the control panel. She pressed a blue button. Suddenly a hologram sign popped up, and a pleasant, mechanical  
voice reading the sign said, "Autopilot. Please set coordinates."  
  
  
"Set coordinates to..." she cocked her head to the side and thought for a moment.  
  
'Well, that's the last place I knew about... maybe he's still there...'  
  
"Earth."  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*   
It was a bright and sunny day on earth. As usual, the whole gang was at Capsule Corporation, hanging out.   
  
  
Chi-Chi had just cooked a huge meal and now everyone was just sitting around, relaxing. Pan, Marron, Bra, and Nazomi *my own made up character... Piccolo's  
daughter* were in Bra's room, talking and listening to one of Nazomi's CDs from her extensive music collection.  
  
  
Chi-Chi, Videl, Juuhachigou, Bulma, and Mercy *Piccolo's beautiful French wife^_^* were in the kitchen, talking. Most of the guys (Goku, Gohan, Goten, Trunks,  
Kuririn, Uubu, and Yamucha) were in the living room watching a baseball game. Piccolo was outside meditating (which Mercy always thought he looked *so* cute  
doing), and Vegeta, as usual, was in the Gravity Room training.  
  
  
And as for Master Roshii and Oolong - they were in one of the guest rooms, playing a video game - now this may seem unusual for them to be doing, being the  
perverts that they were, but that was the point - they were playing a game called 'Primal Image', which Nazomi had given Master Roshii (if he promised to stop  
being such a pervert around girls). And this was no regular game - the game featured a variety of different women (mostly teenage girls) that they could choose from,  
put them in whatever type of clothes that they wanted (if not to leave them completely naked), and the catch was that they were able to pose them however they  
wanted.   
  
  
And now, Master Roshii, with a drooling Oolong at his side, was in the midst of posing a girl with a yellow/orange string bikini lying on her back with her legs wide  
open... *I'm not kidding, this is an actual game... really disgusting, if u ask me....*  
  
A lot of noise cold be heard coming from the living room; the guys in there considered the game going on now important, it being the last game of the season, and a  
lot of people were showing great support for their own team, which included shouting at the top of their lungs as if the players could hear them.   
  
  
"YES!! Oh Kami, somebody get Nazomi!!" cried Goten, looking as if someone just gave him a fifty-course dinner.   
  
  
"Why?" asked Trunks, who was backing away from Goten, trying not to get hurt as Goten started jumping up and down and doing what looked like dancing.  
  
  
"We made a bet," said Goten as he began to calm down, though not completely - he still had an ear-to-ear grin on his face and was shaking like mad. Still panting,  
his fists clenched, he continued -   
  
  
"She bet me that by fifth - inning, the Sox would be up by at least two points!!" *I don't even know anything about baseball... I'm just making this up* "I told her  
that she was crazy and that the Yankees would be in the lead, so we made a bet!! Now she owes me nine hundred dollars!!" he said ecstatically.   
  
  
"You guys bet *that* much money?" said Gohan incredulously.   
  
  
"We're both *very* confident in our teams, " Goten spoke seriously before going back into histerics.   
  
  
"Ah," said Gohan as he nodded, looking slightly amused.  
  
  
"I'll go get Nazomi," said Trunks. "I was gonna get a soda in a minute anyway.."  
  
  
He got up and walked through the kitchen where the women were talking to get the soda, and then he took the stairs by two to Bra's room. When he got there, he  
heard loud music coming from inside and the door was locked. He knocked, but the music was too loud, then knocked a little bit harder, causing the door to shake.   
  
  
Suddenly the music got quieter. He heard the lock coming undone and saw Bra standing behind the door as it opened.  
  
  
"Hey," she said.   
  
"Where's Nazomi?" he asked, walking into the room.  
  
  
"Over here, Boxers!!" he heard Nazomi's voice shout.  
  
  
He looked over at the other side of the large room, where he saw Pan and Nazomi lying on the floor. Pan was apparently concentrating hard, though both her and  
Nazomi looked as if they would burst out laughing at any moment.  
  
  
"What are you guys doing?" asked Trunks, seeing the board as he walked over to where they were lying on the floor.  
  
  
"They're playing 'Scribble'," said a bemused Marron, who had gotten up from Bra's bed to walk over and wrap he arms around Trunks.   
  
He looked at the board more closely, putting his arm on her shoulder. "I thought it was called 'Scrabble'," he said, looking confused.   
  
  
"Well if you wanna play it *their* way it is," said Nazomi as she looked up at him with her bright orange eyes, a child-like smile on her face as she swung her legs  
back and forth. "But this way is more fun."  
  
  
"Oh, really? Well how do you play 'Scribble'?"  
  
  
"The same way as 'Scrabble'. Except in 'Scribble', we use nonsense words. Like a minute ago, I spelled out 'wazza'..." she had a broad grin on her face as she  
looked back own at the board, showing off her sharp white fangs.  
  
  
"Aha!!!" shouted Pan suddenly (causing everyone to jump and Trunks to start choking on his soda), laughing like a maniac as she chose six out of her seven letters  
and put them down on the board.   
  
  
"BOOOH-YA!!! Triple word score!!" she cried as if this meant that she had won a million dollars. "I win!! (Which is pretty good, I was running out of letters...)"   
  
  
Nazomi looked down at the word Pan had spelled out. "Zazzow? Nice one!!" she said. "I never would have thought of that word..."   
  
  
"...Oh yeah, Nazomi - Goten wanted to talk to you downstairs," said Trunks after he recovered.  
  
  
"Okay." Nazomi got up and stretched, then walked back downstairs with Trunks.   
  
  
Goten was still breathing heavily when Trunks and Nazomi walked into the room. The game had gone to a commercial break, and most of the guys were talking  
about the score and their predictions for the rest of the game.   
  
  
"Ya know... that Radio Shack guy kinda looks like Duke Nukem with those shades on," said Nazomi thoughtfully as she stared at the man on the commercial.   
  
  
"You know... I have *never* noticed that before," said Goten goofily as he looked at the TV. "You're right..."  
  
  
"So what did you want, Ten?" Nazomi asked Goten as she sat half on the arm of the plush chair and leaning down on his shoulder so that she was half in his lap.   
  
  
He gave her an evil grin, making her orange eyes go wide. "What?"   
  
  
"You'll see," he said, a hint of maliciousness in his voice.   
  
  
Nazomi stared at him.  
  
  
"Just watch," he said, pointing to the television screen.  
  
  
As if on command, the game came back and one of the men doing the commentary immediately said, "Let's check up on those scores, shall we? In the first inning..."  
he announced the scores for each inning and finally got to the fifth, indicating that the Yankees were about 3 points in the lead.   
  
  
Nazomi stared at the television, her mouth open and her eyes wide, looking as if she wanted to blow it up right then and there. At first she was quiet, then -   
  
  
"DAMN IT!!" she cried, though she didn't feel quite as angry as she let on; She didn't really need the money, her parents spoiled her rotten - She could have  
anything she wanted. And her mother was plenty rich, nine hundred dollars didn't really matter to her.   
  
But she *hated* losing.  
  
  
Goten just sat there, twiddling his thumbs and smirking. Nazomi sat back down, her face in a cross   
state.   
  
  
"Fine, Ten, you win..." she growled, getting up again and taking her silvery, bubble-patterned wallet out of her pocket. Goten heard her mutter, "Pedro, how could  
you do this to me?" She took nine one-hundred-dollar bills out of it and shoved them into his hand.   
  
  
"I *will* win next time... you'd better get ready to be my personal butler!"  
  
  
"I don't think so," said Goten, looking through the money.  
  
  
"Oh yeah?" said Nazomi.   
  
"Yeah!" said Goten, taking his eyes off of the money for the first time in a few minutes to look at Nazomi.  
  
  
"Oh yeah?"   
  
"Yeah!"   
  
"You wanna bet?" said Nazomi challengingly.   
  
  
"I zink zat's enough betting for now," said Mercy, who was leaning on the door frame, her arms crossed. She looked at Nazomi and clicked her tongue  
disapprovingly as she shook her head.  
  
"Okay," said Goten, who was staring at Mercy.   
Nazomi gave him a look that said plainly, "You are *hopeless*!" and walked over to her mother to give her a hug.   
  
"I'm sorry, mommy, I'll never do it again," said Nazomi in a baby-ish voice as she hugged her mother.  
  
"Oh, eet's alright, darling," said Mercy, rubbing Nazomi's back gently. She smiled at Nazomi and gave her a kiss on her forehead.   
  
When Mercy left to go back to the kitchen, Nazomi gave herself a satisfied smirk - she could still get her parents to do whatever she wanted them to. Not that she  
didn't like or respect her parents - she loved them, of course - but she just liked knowing that she could control them and get away with anything.   
  
They suddenly heard shouts behind them as the game finished - the Yankees had won. Nazomi stomped hard on the ground, causing the room to shake slightly.  
  
"No!" she cried. "Pedro, Manny, Nomar.. how could you guys do this to me...?"  
  
"What's going on down here?" they turned to see Chi-Chi standing in the doorway, a frown upon her face.  
  
"The Sox just lost the game," Goten answered for her since Nazomi was still staring at the television set in horror.   
  
"Well that's still no reason to be making so much noise," she said. "Try to keep it quiet."  
  
"You guys are just calling *all* of the attention to this room, huh?" said Pan as she walked into the room, holding a party-size bag of chips. "Aw man, the Sox lost?"  
she said, a slight grimace of disappointment on her face. She noticed Nazomi staring at the bag with a scowl on her face as if the chips were her worst enemy.  
  
"You want some?" said Pan teasingly - she knew Nazomi wouldn't eat any of it.  
  
"Ugh... no thank you. Too fattening..."  
  
"So? You could work off the fat in about two seconds."  
  
"Uh-uh. I don't know how you can stand that stuff... It destroys your body. And if I ever want that much grease, I will just crack open a jug o' Crisco and take a  
nice long swig, thank-you-very-much..." she stated, still eyeing the bag hatefully - Like her father, Nazomi didn't eat very often.  
  
Pan shook her head and laughed softly. She looked at the TV and they could see her eyebrows raising behind the bag chips. "So you lost the bet, huh?" she said  
before putting another handful of chips into her mouth.  
  
"Yeah... But the Sox should've won," said Nazomi sadly.   
  
"No way! I knew that the Yankees would win," said Goten.   
  
"*Liar*!" cried Nazomi, pointing an accusing finger at him.  
  
Soon enough, there was huge discussion about who should've won and why. They began listing players, starters, hitters, past games, winning streaks each team had  
ever had, etc.   
  
"Yeah, but - " said Goku, who was in the midst of defending the Sox, suddenly stopped talking, and the others knew exactly why. They suddenly felt a massive  
power. Everyone suddenly felt as if a huge weight had been put on every part of their bodies, as if the air had gained about a ton. Even Piccolo had stopped  
meditating. Vegeta, who had been sitting in a tree resting, suddenly stood up, eyes wide. He recognized that ki signature immediately. He closed his eyes, brows  
furrowed, trying to concentrate on where the enormous force was coming from.  
  
Chi-Chi, Bulma, Juuhachigou, Videl, Bra, Marron, and Mercy went to the living room, worried   
expressions on their faces - except for Juuhachigou, who looked intrigued.   
  
"So you felt it too?" asked Goku.  
  
"Yeah," answered Bulma. This only showed the strength of whatever the ki energy was coming from - even people that weren't trained to recognize ki signatures  
could feel the tension in the atmosphere.   
  
"Hey... what if it's a new enemy?" asked Nazomi, a mixture of alarm and enthusiasm in her voice. She'd always heard stories about the old enemies such as Frieza,  
Cell, the Androids, etc. - and always wanted to be in some type of battle.   
"I 'ope not," said Mercy.  
  
"Whoever or whatever that is.... is really strong..." said Goten, overwhelmed by the feeling. None of them had ever felt anything like it before.  
  
Soon, everyone was outside, trying to figure out where it was coming from - but it was so big it seemed to be coming from *everywhere*.  
  
Suddenly Vegeta jumped out of the tree that he was sitting in.  
  
"I don't know about you lethargic bakas," said Vegeta harshly, "but I'm going to check this out. I've been looking for a good fight..." with that, he powered up to  
super saiyajin level 1 and was about to fly away when Bulma grabbed his arm.   
  
"Be careful," said, a worried expression on her face.  
  
"Humph... Whatever, woman," he grunted, and blasted off in the direction of the power source, determined to ignore his Earthbound mate's emotional probing.  
  
The rest of them stood there, still trying to contemplate what they where going to do.  
  
"I'm going too," Piccolo growled suddenly. "I want to know what this is about." Without another word, he blasted off after Vegeta.   
  
"Maybe we should all go," said Trunks. "Whatever this is... we all know that it's too strong for only a few of us to take on by ourselves. I doubt that even all of us  
would be able to stand up against it together..."  
  
"Trunks is right. And besides, we can't leave Vegeta and Piccolo out there by themselves," said Goten, though he looked just as anxious as everyone else did.  
  
"I'm going," piped up Pan.   
  
"Me too," Juuhachigou murmured, getting ready to take off.  
  
"Ditto," Kuririn and Yamucha boomed in unison.  
  
"Are you coming?" Yamucha asked Nazomi before he blasted off. "You could really help us out if we got into trouble...."   
  
"Maybe later," she said, looking slightly nervous.  
  
He looked confused at first, then nodded and blasted off into the air after the others.   
  
"Mom, did you see where I put my car keys?" asked Nazomi as she searched her pockets.  
  
"Can't you fly?" asked Mercy. Not that she wanted Nazomi to go, but she was well aware of her airborne capabilities.   
  
"Yeah, but do you see my hair?" she asked, pointing to her long, silky maroonish-purple hair, which was mostly free, except for bangs and a few half-braided  
ponytails at the top of her head. "If I fly, this like sooo totally gonna frizz," she said as she walked inside to search her purse.   
  
After a few minutes, she came back, a victorious look on her face, declaring that she'd found her keys.  
  
"You guys wanna come?" she asked as she walked over to the car (which had a license plate that said 'QUEEN NA-NA' on it).  
  
"I've got dibs on the front seat," said Bra as she ran over to the passenger side and hopped in.  
  
"Eef you're going, I'm comeeng weeth you," said Mercy, throwing on her brown, fur-trimmed leather jacket.  
  
"I'm coming too," said Marron as she jumped in beside Bra (there were three seats up-front).  
  
"You might as well all come," said Nazomi as she fixed her rear-view mirror. "Unless you wanna stay here with Master Roshii or something..." she stopped playing  
with the mirror and concentrated on where everyone's ki was.  
  
By the time she found them, the rest of the women were in the two back rows of the car. She smirked and started the large, red Hummer jeep and the truck was  
suddenly filled with loud music. Nazomi instantly turned it down and muttered, "Sorry," purple flecks of color crossing her green face as she blushed.  
  
She floored the pedal and they were off.  
  
********************************************************************************************  
  
Everyone (that could fly) was flying south, towards the power source. And to their utter surprise, it completely disappeared. Everyone stopped abruptly.   
"Well, whatever it was either is gone now or is masking their power really well," said Juuhachigou, taken back.   
Everyone decided mentally that the person was masking their power.  
"If we go to where we last felt the ki signature, we might find a clue," said Goku. So they kept going.  
And it happened that Goku was right - they did find a clue when they got there. Their 'clue' turned out to be a very big, jade gray ship. The ship was floating a few  
hundred meters above the ground.   
  
"Cool," said Goten out loud, though he hadn't meant to.  
  
Pan flew around the ship to investigate it more closely. When she was above the ship, she froze.  
  
"What is it?" shouted Uubu.  
  
"There's some type of weird emblem on the top of this thing," said Pan, looking down at the ship. The others flew up to see what she was talking about it. And sure  
enough, there was a lionized, gold "V" with two crossed, emblazoned swords in the background.   
  
"What could that mean?" asked Trunks, his head tipped to the side in confusion.   
  
"I know exactly what it is," said a gruff voice from behind them. Everyone turned to see Vegeta floating in midair, arms crossed, head bowed down. To their  
surprise, his face wasn't in its usual livid statue appearance, but in a blank state. No readable expression at all.  
  
"Well... what is it?" asked Pan. He raised his head, his face completely solemn.   
  
"It's the Vejitasei Coat of Arms," he said quietly.  
  
Everyone stared at him in utter shock.   
  
After what seemed like ten minutes, Goku said, "Are you sure?"  
  
"Of course I'm sure, dimwit," spat Vegeta, annoyed.   
  
"But that's impossible... I thought that Freiza had destroyed Vejitasei," said Kuririn.  
  
"It did," mumbled Vegeta quietly.   
  
"Well then... h-how could the Coat of Arms be on this ship?" said Pan.  
  
Vegeta didn't answer right away. He just floated there, arms crossed, his head bowed down. He could only think of one explanation for this...  
  
"I don't know," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.  
  
"Maybe this is a trick," said Goten. "Maybe this ship isn't really from Vejitsei..."  
  
"No, it's real. The ship... it looks saiyan," said Vegeta. Everyone thought that something was weird about Vegeta. He wasn't yelling, he didn't look mad... he was  
just floating there like he was numb.   
  
Was he *scared*?  
  
All of a sudden, everyone felt the huge burst of power again. They immediately had to descend to the ground. Vegeta powered up to super saiyajin level two and  
blasted off again, this time going east.  
  
"....I'm guessing that whatever it is... is over there," said Kuririn, his eyebrow raised.  
  
"We should follow him," said Piccolo.  
  
Now everyone was flying east, following Vegeta's faint ki trail. Vegeta began to slow down, then stopped. He landed about a hundred meters from the coast of a  
beach. The others landed there as well. They still felt the huge power nearby, but they couldn't quite pinpoint where it was coming from. Then they felt it a bit farther  
west. But to their surprise, Vegeta took off flying farther east. They thought that of all people, he would want to know what was going on...  
  
*****************************************  
  
Vegeta continued flying east, away from where the power *seemed* to be coming from. He knew that maneuver all too well, and that the source of the power was  
really coming from the opposite direction. He finally saw her standing on a cliff, looking out at the ocean below.  
  
He couldn't believe how much she'd changed since he'd last seen her. For one thing, her hair had doubled in length, and her body was much more curvacious, even  
though she had been pretty well developed when he'd left. She also looked older, but still very young despite her age.   
  
She was wearing a skin-tight leather suit which had a zipper in front, and the zipper was pulled down slightly, exposing some cleavage. She had a pink Scouter over  
her left eye, though he doubted that she needed it, and her tail, silky brown fur and all, was wrapped around her thin waist.  
  
  
He landed soundlessly behind her, and then crossed his arms. They both knew that she knew he was there.  
  
  
She smiled, still looking out at the ocean that was spread before them, and then turned around slowly.  
  
  
"...Why, hello," she said, still smiling warmly. She had a very deep, husky voice - her voice was low, commanding, and resilient, with abundant power - but at the  
same time pleasant and kind, and could be very sensual and soothing. *And also - remember that British accent that I told you about last time* "I'd almost thought  
you'd forgotten about that tactic."   
The tactic she was referring to was an evasion technique, taught to a special few saiyajins - they could divert their ki to another direction so that whatever enemy they  
were against would think that they were in one place when they were really in another, confusing the adversary and giving the saiyajin the chance, if severely needed,  
to escape.  
He merely smiled. "You almost fooled me," he said quietly.  
  
She grinned and then turned to sit on the edge of the cliff, her legs hanging off of the edge.  
  
"Who were they?" she asked after a moment, her voice sounding serious.  
  
"Who?" he asked, as if he didn't know who she were speaking of.  
  
"The people that were trying to follow me."  
  
"...I don't know... And now I have a question for you," he said, also sounding serious.  
  
She remained silent, knowing what the question was going to be.  
  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
"...I should be asking you the same thing," she said. "What happened?"  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Where's Nappa?"  
  
"Dead," he answered, making her gray eyes go wide. "He was weak. I killed him."  
  
She was still quite surprised, but nodded nonetheless and looked down. "And Raditz?"  
  
"...He is also dead," he said. "But he died under different circumstances."  
  
She looked back down at the water. "...You?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Why are you still here? Why haven't you completed the mission yet?"  
  
Now there was something he was going to have trouble answering.  
  
"...I got stuck here," he lied. "My ship was destroyed and I was stranded."  
  
Her eyebrow was raised, she knew he was lying, but she didn't enquire him any farther on the subject.  
  
"Wasn't there another saiyan here? Bardock's son?"  
  
"...yes..."  
  
"Well do you know where he is? Is he alive?"  
  
"He's alive," said Vegeta dully. "But when we got here, he'd lost his programming, and had lost his tail... so he'd been living among these humans as if he were one of  
them."  
  
"And the same situation befalls you, I presume?" she asked quietly.  
  
"Ahre?" *Huh?*  
  
She pointed to him. "You're tail seems to be missing, you are dressed like a human, and the fact that you've been here for about four decades is a supporting factor."  
  
He'd forgotten about the ensemble he was wearing - the black sleeveless jacket, the black tank-top, black jeans, boots and the fingerless gloves. *Well.. just picture  
the basic GT outfit, really*  
  
His hair was also a lot shorter than it was when he'd first come to earth. *GT hair, too*  
  
He looked back at her to find that she'd been staring at him.  
  
"Well you've changed, too," he said as if it were an excuse.  
  
She laughed softly and shook her head. "At least *my* changes were good..."  
  
"Yes, they were..." said Vegeta as he looked over her body. When he realized what he'd said and done, he slapped himself mentally.   
  
"But do you know what... what happened to Vejitasei? I've heard rumors, but... I just don't believe them..."  
  
"What rumors?"  
  
"...Well... I... I heard that Frieza did it... destroyed Vejitasei..." she shook her head slowly. "But of course, I just don't think that it could be true... I mean, why would  
he? He wouldn't..."  
  
"Well... I knew that the planet had been destroyed a few months after I got here," he began. He sighed suddenly, "He would and he did."   
  
Now she just looked shocked. She didn't even ask. She didn't want to know. She turned away, her look of shock melting into a look of sick disgust, disgust in  
finding out that someone you trusted did something like that....  
  
"So where *is* Bardock's child, anyway?" she said, changing the subject.  
  
"...around..."  
  
"Vegeta, don't do that."  
  
He shrugged in response.  
  
She scowled, though she wasn't very angry. She turned around and looked at him again. He looked so much older, yet still so young... he had continued his training,  
obviously. For one thing, his ki was quite a bit higher, though he didn't have his tail, and that should have reduced his energy level ten times... and his muscles were  
much more developed and defined...  
  
And his hair, she liked it. It looked better short.  
  
She smiled and blushed slightly when she realized that she'd been staring at him. It had been a long time since she'd seen him, the only image of him being a portrait in  
the Hall of Kings in the castle... and of course, his father, a perfect picture of him, except King Vegeta had a goatee, and his face wasn't as defined and strong...   
  
She looked down at the ocean below them, and watched the sun as it began to set, a beatiful sunset accompanied by flourishes of color, going from yellow to orange  
to pink, to red, to purple, to a deep, dark blue...  
  
'It doesn't even compare to the sunsets on Vegita-sei,' she thought, grinning.  
  
"What are you smiling at?" asked Vegeta, who had realized that she was suddenly grinning at nothing,  
  
"...Hmm...? Oh, the sunset... I like them more back home... I find watching *both* suns setting at once is more beautiful..." she sighed and rested her chin in her  
hand, still staring at the sunset.  
  
He looked at her, and found himself staring in awe at her beauty. She'd always been beautiful, her entire life... and now, sitting with that content look on her face, the  
light from the sunset illuminating and shadowing her features, accenting her high cheekbones...  
  
He shook his head slightly, clearing his mind of such thoughts. No, he was married to Bulma now, and he was bonded with her... he loved her very, very, much,  
though he'd never admitted it in his life, and wasn't exactly planning on doing so anytime soon. What he'd had with Clarice was in the past.   
  
Now all he'd have to do was tell her.  
  
This was going to be hard, considering the fact that the woman could kill him with little or no effort in *much* less than a nano-second without a second thought to it.  
  
The look of wonder suddenly left her face. She frowned, looking slightly sad.  
  
Just *ever* so slightly.  
  
"...You..." she exhaled deeply, and contined, "You have another mate, don't you..." she said, turning to look at him with her chin still in her palm.  
  
He looked taken back. How did she know?  
  
"Human, I presume?" she said, looking back at the still setting sun. "I don't remember there ever being any other dominant speicies here that were... 'related' to  
saiyans..."   
  
He knew what she meant by 'related' - it meant that humans had the same qualities as saiyans, except of course the attribute of power; these qualities being the same  
body anatomy, ability to think, work, reproduce, and of course, to love.  
  
"...*And* I can say quite confidently that you have at least one child."  
  
How did she know all this? He felt kind of sorry, owing to the fact that she looked quite expressionless. Clarice's face always expressed some type of emotion,  
whether it be anger, exasperation, amusement, boredom, happiness... and the only time her face didn't display some type of emotion was when she was depressed  
or upset and didn't want to show it.  
  
"...Y-yes," he said. "How did you know?"  
  
"I can tell... and remember when I asked you who those people were?"   
  
"Hai." *Yes.*  
  
"Well... I was hoping you'd tell me the truth about that," she said quietly. "I could feel an excess of your ki in one of them. That automatically told me-"  
  
"That he was my son," finished Vegeta, feeling quite stupid. He knew that the person she'd felt had to be Trunks.  
  
She nodded slowly, her eyes cast downward.  
  
"Gomen nasai... daijoubu?" he asked. *I'm sorry... Are you alright?*  
  
"Shinpai shinai," she said, shrugging her shoulders. *It's Alright.* Then she looked at him and said softly, "Sugei..." before turning away. *Wow...*  
  
"Nani?" he asked. *What?*   
  
"...human..." she said, laughing softly and looking up at the sky.  
  
"So? Do you have a problem with it?" he asked fiercely.  
  
"Iie... Wakatta... tonde monai," she said quietly, though she still looked a little amused. *No... I understand... Not a problem* "But I know someone that *will* have  
a problem with it," she said, suddenly looking serious.  
  
"Nani? Who?" *What? Who?*  
  
"Your father." She looked at him, not knowing what to expect.   
  
"*What*?" he said, his voice a dangerous whisper, his face split between disbelief and rage.   
  
She understood how he felt, and she knew that he hated his father more then anything in the world. And even more, he was intimidated by him, which actually wasn't  
his shortcoming - King Vegeta was a very intimidating person, even almost scary if he wanted to be. He was also cunning, ruthless, dangerous, and could turn even  
the best of allies against each other.  
"He's *alive*?" asked Vegeta.  
  
"Ano... hai," she answered. *Um... yeah*  
  
"Since when?" exclaimed Vegeta.  
  
"Well... after I found out that the planet had been destroyed.... Have you ever heard of the Black-Star Dragon Balls?"  
  
"..hai.." *...yes...*  
  
"Well, I got the Dragon Balls together and wished it back..."  
  
Vegeta buried his face in his hands, and then he began to massage his temples slowly.  
  
"Well, I suppose that you know why I'm here now," she said quietly after a moment.  
  
"T-to take me *back*?" he stuttered in anger, his voice still excercising the same dangerous whisper.  
  
"...H-hai," she said quietly. *...Y-yes* She wasn't afraid of him, but she was afraid of what his reaction could be.   
  
"USO!!" he yelled. *NO WAY!!*   
  
"Vegeta, Onegai!!" she cried. *Vegeta. Please!!* "At least-"  
  
"Iie!" he spat. *No!*  
  
She looked down at the waves that were crashing at the bottom of th cliff. She could understand if and why he didn't want to go back... after being on this planet for  
so long, he proabably liked it here... and he had probably become accustomed to everyone and everything throughout the planet. He most likely even considered it a  
second home.  
  
And then there was the fact that he was bonded with a human... She stared at him for a moment, then turned to look at the sunset.   
  
This was harder for her than she thought it would be.   
  
King Vegeta was what some people would call 'racist', but not in the manner that most people thought of it - he thought that saiyans were meant to rule the galaxy,  
that they were the strongest, the best, the most intelligent, and that all other populaces of the universe were nothing but lowly, dirty, vermin made to be game for the  
saiyans to hunt and kill for sport, and if ever left to live, to be their slaves and do whatever they wished without any type of resistence; to live in the shadow of the  
saiyans, to be ridiculed and belittled...  
  
"Maybe-" she bagan before Vegeta interrupted.  
  
"I ALREADY SAID -"  
  
Before he could finish, Clarice grabbed him by the shoulders and slapped him across the face. Luckily, she could control her immense power, or she may have killed  
him right then, but she only slapped him hard enough to stun him a bit.  
  
"Vegeta! Urusai!" *Vegeta! Shut up!* "Please let me speak for a moment..."  
  
When he didn't say anything, she continued. "I have a proposition to make," she said quietly, looking him in the eye. She let go of him when she was sure he wouldn't  
interfere anymore. She sighed and continued.  
  
"I will give you... some time to think about it. Let's say... a week? I'm not supposed to, I'm supposed to find you and drag you back kicking and screaming if I have  
to," she said, her crimson lips curling slightly into a tiny smile. "But I think that you have a right to decide."  
  
He looked down at the ground. She was doing this for him?   
  
"And if it happens that you choose to stay here," she continued, "I'll... I'll just call this mission failed and mark you as 'lost'," she said, shrugging her shoulders, though  
she seemed almost fearful of the possibility that he would make that decision; if she failed the mission, she would most likely be discharged, though the King might let  
it go - one, for being the best right-hand any King had ever had, and two, because he - well, she didn't want to think about it.  
  
"A...::sigh::...Arigatou," he said quietly. *Th...::Sigh::...Thank you*  
  
She looked up at him, surprised, then smiled. "Doitashimashite," she said, still smiling. *Your welcome*   
  
"And about your family," she said suddenly, "And whatever friends you have here... You are welcome to tell them about your predicament if you trust them... and  
you are absolutely sure that they will not pressure you either way. But I'd advise you..." she took his hand in hers and squeezed it gently, "to do whatever makes you  
happy."  
  
He looked at her, disbelieving.  
  
"Clarice..."  
  
She smiled and put her finger to his lips, shushing him, and then she found herself looking at his mouth. She leaned over and kissed him softly, her soft lips just  
brushing his own for a few seconds.  
  
She pulled back from the kiss, much to both of their distress. She whispered softly, her face still only inches from his, "Just for old time's sake..."   
  
She got up and turned back to smile at him one last time, then blasted off into the dark twighlight of the sky.  
  
**************************************************************************************************************  
  
"No, I swear, that ki was RIGHT HERE!" cried Pan, becoming more and more agrivated.  
  
They'd been standing in that same area by the beach all afternoon, feeling the ki move around them as if it were only a ghost. By sunset, they'd heard the roar of an  
engine, and could see the redness of Nazomi's Hummer through the mass of dust and sand that it's rugged tires had been kicking up.   
  
But to their surprise, the ki disappeared again, and this time it was taking longer to come back, if it were coming back.  
  
Now it was dusk, the sun setting behind the clear blue water of the ocean, and everyone was waiting, waiting for something to show up and reveal where this  
mysterious force was coming from.  
  
Bra and Marron were singing along with one of Nazomi's Destiny's Child CDs in the front seat of the Hummer; Mercy was sitting on the hood of the car, her chin  
sitting in her palms, talking to Piccolo; Videl and Chi-Chi were all the way in the back (the third row), just talking; Nazomi was playing with one of her laptops, this  
one of which she'd found in the trunk of the car before she'd gone over to ask Pan what had happened; and Bulma was trying to get as much info as she could on  
Vegeta's whereabouts.   
"What if this is the spirit of a dead saiyajin?!" said Nazomi.   
"What?" said Pan, looking confused.   
"Y'know, it could be," continued Nazomi. "I mean... since there's a ki and there's no one to be seen anywhere near it... it doesn't seem to have any 'owner'..."  
Pan and Nazomi looked at eachother for a moment, then said "Nah," in unison, shaking their heads.  
  
"But I know what it could be," said Pan suddenly. "Once I was talking to Vegeta... and I asked him if he were in hiding and really weak, what he would do, because  
he's always taking pride in how strong he is... and he told me he'd 'Never be in such a predicament'... but he said that if he ever were in that situation, he'd keep  
fighting the enemy, AND he would win." She shook her slowly. "But then he muttered something about how someone exremely weak would divert their ki to get  
away. He called it pathetic..."  
  
"So... so you think that that's what's going on?" asked Nazomi, looking intrigued.   
  
"Uh-huh..."  
  
"C'mon! Let's go tell everyone else!"  
  
"But Nazo-"  
  
But Pan's pleas went un-noticed by the excited Nazomi, who had grabbed her hand and was practically dragging her towards the group.  
  
"Pan thinks that she knows where the 'thing' is!" cried Nazomi, running over to everyone else and hauling Pan along with her.  
  
"Really? Where?" asked Gohan.  
  
"Uh..." Pan began to feel nervous, now everyone was staring at her. "Thanks a lot, Nazomi," she hissed at her before she began talking. "Ano... V-Vegeta told me  
once that w-weaker saiyajins c-could divert their ki in order to escape from an enemy," she explained.   
  
"But I wouldn't exactly call whatever that thing was *weak*," said Uubu.   
  
"...He didn't say that they could divert it to a special direction, all he said was that it would the other person off..."   
  
"So... you mean that whatever that thing was could be *anywhere*?" said Goten.  
  
"I guess so..."   
  
"Hey! Maybe they could throw their ki in the opposite direction," said Bra, who'd been sitting in the doorway of the car, listening. "I mean, the opposite direction is  
the farthest you can possibly get them from you, right...?"  
  
"Oh my GOD Bra, you're smarter than you look," said Nazomi teasingly.  
  
Bra glowered at her, though there was a smile of amusement tugging at the corners of her lips.  
  
"Oh! So THAT'S why Vegeta went east when the force seemed to be going farther west," said Goku. "Same to you, Koo-koo clock," said Nazomi.  
  
"Then... then Vegeta's with what-whatever that *thing* is! Oh Kami, what if he's hurt?" cried Bulma, apparently going into histerics. "Oh, Kami, what if.. what if  
he's...de..." she couldn't even say the word.  
  
"Bulma, you don't even know if he's in any danger at all," said Juuhachigou, slightly annoyed by Bulma's sudden panic. "If whatever this is is saiyajin, than you don't  
have to worry, they wouldn't hurt their 'prince'..." she said, making the flying quote marks with her fingers.  
  
Bulma was beginning to calm down, but then Juuhachigou added, "But it's the possibility that they're *not* saiyajin that you have to worry about... whatever this thing  
is knew that they could make contact with him by doing that diversion thing, so they obviously had some type of 'buisness' to take care of with him."  
  
"Yeah, Juu-Juu Bee!" said Nazomi. "Great job on the... detective... work..."   
  
But she stopped when she saw the look on Bulma's face; she was staring at Juuhachigou, wide-eyed.  
  
"What? I was only saying that it was a possibility..." said Juuhachigou.   
  
"Uh... why don't we try going back east and see if we can find out where Vegeta and the other.. thing are?" said Pan, trying to ease the unbearable tension.  
  
"...Yeah! Great idea, alright." People began babbling okays and prepared to find Vegeta, wherever he may have been.  
  
"You guys'll probably have to stay here," said Goku.   
  
"Oh no, I'm going with you guys," said Bulma fiercely. "I want to find Vegeta as much as you do."  
  
"But it could be dangerous," said Gohan. "It wouldn't help if you got hurt, too-"  
  
"I DON'T CARE!" she cried.   
  
"Fine... Bulma, I'll take you," said Yamucha.  
  
"THANK YOU! *Finally* someone agrees with me," said Bulma, walking over to Yamucha to stand beside him.  
  
"He doesn't agree with you, he's just afraid of you," everyone heard a voice say.  
  
They turned to see Nazomi, leaning on the car with her arms crossed, looking up at the stars.  
  
She felt them watching her and turned to them, feeling nervous.  
  
"What?" she asked, before realization dawned on her. "Oh, did I say that out loud?" she asked, her hands over her mouth.  
  
Some of them laughed, but soon the matter at hand forced them to start thinking about finding Vegeta.  
  
"Okay... we can split up going east, and probe around for Vegeta's ki or the ki of that... person," began Goku. "But remember to keep your own ki really low. We  
don't want to give the person a warning..."  
  
The others nodded, and Goku turned to the others.  
  
"Bra and Nazomi, if anything shows up here, drop us a line, okay?" he said, looking at both of them.  
  
They both nodded.  
  
"You guys ready?" asked Goku, looking around anxiously.   
  
The rest of them nodded. Yamcha picked up Bulma, and they were off.  
  
"So... what do we do now?" asked Bra after a moment, already bored.   
  
"Oooh! Oooh! We can tell scary stories," said Nazomi. "Hey, a bunch of girls in the middle of no where in the middle of the night? Eh? Eh?" she said, elbowing Bra  
playfully with each 'eh'.   
  
Bra laughed and said, "Alright. Marron, you coming with us?" she asked as she and Nazomi got out of the car.  
"Sure."  
  
"Wait a minute... I'm just gonna leave the headlights on," said Nazomi before she got out of the car. "Just so we don't get lost when we come out of the woods..."  
  
"But why don't you just find your Chi-Chi or Videl or your mother's ki?" said Marron. "That would be easier..."  
  
"But if I raise my ki the guys'll think that I'm trying to signal them... Mommy? We'll be back in a little while," shouted Nazomi to her mother after she'd set the  
headlights to high-beams. She'd even left some music on, just slightly loud - with her and Bra's sensitive hearing, that would be another way of finding the car. "But..."  
she suddenly glanced over at where her mother, Chi-Chi, and Videl were sitting.   
  
"What's wrong?" asked Marron.  
  
"Well... we were supposed to stay here incase anyone or anything showed up," she said, looking worried. "But... what if something showed up and my mom was still  
here? I mean... I'd feel so guilty if she got hurt..."  
  
"Yeah, I know what you mean," said Bra. "...So... what, are we bailing?"  
  
"...No, I have an idea," said Nazomi. She suddenly leaped into the air and landed a few hundred feet from where she'd been standing.   
  
She took a few deep breaths, her arms at her sides, and began to power up immensely.   
  
Mercy, Chi-Ch, and Videl, thinking something was wrong, stood up on a flat boulder that was nearby and watched Nazomi intently.  
  
Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, and then they were plunged into darkness again.  
  
No one could see what was goin on, that is until Nazomi jogged back over to the car. They noticed that she looked a bit different...  
  
That was the thing with Nazomi's split-forms - since she was half-human, half of her came out looking more human and the other part of her came out looking more  
Nemekian.   
  
The Nazomi that was jogging over to them was the more Nemekian one - her skin was a slightly darker shade of green, her hair was a lot shorter and had turned  
and had gotten darker, her eyes were also now black instead of orange, her fangs were sharper, her white, long, claw-like nails were longer, Her lips had turned  
black, despite the purple lipstick she had been wearing, and since she had been wearing a tight, gray tank-top, they could see that she'd become a bit more  
muscular.   
  
A few seconds later, the more human Nazomi came over - this one had the same maroon-purple hair color, here eyes were still that insanely bright orange color, her  
lips had seemed to keep the purple lipstick shade, she didn't seem to have fangs, her "claws" had turned simply into long nails, and she didn't appear to be as  
muscular as the other Nazomi. And instead of green, her skin was a dark, tan color, giving her a latin look.  
  
They were even dressed in an opposite manner - the Nemek had a tight, black tank-top on, and the human one had a white tank-top; when Nazomi had been  
'whole', so to speak, she'd been wearing a gray tank-top. But both of them were wearing black flare jeans, along with the bright blue sneakers and the bright blue  
fleece sweaters tied around their waists.   
  
They both arrived at the car, panting slightly; the split form had taken a bit of energy out of them... er, *her*.  
  
"Oh fuck-" swore the Nemekian Nazomi. "The others are gonna think that we were trying to get a hold of them..." she immediately closed her eyes and seemed to  
go into a trance as the human one walked over to the group and leaned against the hood of the large car with her elbows.  
  
"What eez she doeeng?" asked Mercy.   
  
"She's telling everyone else that it was a false alarm," said the Human Nazomi as she tucked a few strands of purple hair behind her ear.   
  
"Alright. They were kinda bitchy about it, but at least now they all know that it was bogus," said the Nemekian Nazomi when she finished 'speaking' to everyone.  
  
Some more attributes of the N. Nazomi - for one, she looked more scary, more dangerous, and tough. Her voice was also a lot deeper, and she seemed to have all  
of Nazomi's worst qualities, such as slight impatience and a dirty mouth.   
  
"Okay. You stay here and protect mom and the others, and I'll go with them," said the Nemek.  
  
The human nodded and hopped up on the side of the hood, her feet resting on the rugged tire and her elbows resting on her knees.  
  
This one was the submissive one.   
  
"Where are you goeeng?" asked Mercy as the Nemekian Nazomi, Bra, and Marron began to walk away.  
  
"Uh... just a little bit into the forest there," said Nazomi, pointing to the mass of trees that was a few kilometers from where they were; she'd decided to go over there  
because it looked eerie and extremely dark, as if the trees where just a structure of pitch blackness, imprinted against the navy-blue mountains about a mile behind  
them.  
  
"Alright, sweet-'eart," shouted Mercy. "Please do not get 'urt..."  
  
"I won't!" shouted Nazomi, waving to her mother.  
  
"You girls better not go too far, okay?" yelled Videl.  
  
"Be careful!" shouted Chi-Chi.   
  
They all nodded, shouted that they'd be bcak soon, and continued walking towards the forest.  
  
"Hey, don't get yourself messed up or I'll pay for it too!" cried the human Nazomi.   
  
"Shut up," yelled the Nemek jokingly. "Same to you!"  
  
The girls walked in silence for a while, headed toward the terrifying forest.  
  
"Don't you think it's weird," asked Marron, her head tipped to the side, "that this thing was so strong, yet it was almost... hiding from us?"  
  
"Yeah," agreed Bra and Nazomi.   
  
"That's true," said Nazomi. "...But you know what I find weirder? Goku tends to be such an idiot sometimes, I mean no disrespect or anything, but when it comes to  
saving someone or fighting something evil, he pulls an Einstein of battle and strategy on us..."  
  
Marron and Bra nodded in agreement.  
  
They walked in silence for a while before they began to speak again.   
  
"This is like one of those horror movies," said Marron, shivering slightly.   
  
"How so?" asked Nazomi, still looking ahead.  
  
"Well... it's like you said earlier. A bunch of teenage girls, in the middle of no where, in the middle of the night..."  
  
"Actually it's only about nine-thirty," said Nazomi, looking at her watch, which was now glowing due to the darkness.  
  
"Wow... it's so dark out here.. it seems more like midnight..." said Bra, looking around anxiously.   
  
"And that's the beauty of it all, folks," said Nazomi, and they could tell that she was grinning even though they couldn't see her very clearly; the occasional moonlight  
caused her barred fangs (which were now longer and sharper) to glint.  
  
"Oooh.... don't do that, Nazomi," begged Bra.   
  
"Do what?"  
  
"Anything that involves your teeth showing... your fangs are freaking me out. They kinda remind of that old movie... what was it...? 'American Werewolf in Paris'..."  
Bra shuddered suddenly.   
  
"I will take that as the compliment that I *know* it was meant to be," said Nazomi haughtily.   
  
Marron laughed, along with Bra. "So... what type of stories are we going to tell?" she asked. "Stupid scary, kinda scary, scary-scary or *really* scary?"   
  
They all looked at eachother and said in unison, "*Really*-scary!"  
  
********************************************************************************************  
  
* ^_^ ... 0_0 ... _ ... O_o ... !_! ... ~_~ ... ';'... =0) ... =0( ... :) ... :( ... =P ... ;) ... ^_^ ... 0_0 ... _ ... ^_^ ... 0_0 ... _ ... O_o ... !_! ... ~_~ ... ';'... =0) ...  
=0( ... :) ... :( ... =P ... ;)..._...=P  
  
Sorry this took so long! So how do u like this chapter so far? I know I kept everyone waiting too long... I apologize. I also wanna warn people that this fic is going  
to begin following the Sonic Adventure storyline after a little while. I wanted to put that in the summary, but there wasn't enough room... BUT WAIT, WAIT, WAIT,  
WAIT!! I know that some of you are saying "Aw, man, this sux!" or something and you're getting ready to leave - but lemme just say this - that's only one part of the  
story. There is A LOOOOOT more going on besides that, so even if you know how some of the things are going to turn out, it'll still be good to read... so if you  
have the game, I hope u'll find this kinda fun to read. Why do u think that i called it "The Legends of Chaos"? You know what Chaos is, right, I mean in the sense of  
the game? If you don't know what Chaos means here, I won't ruin it for u. I just thought it would be kewl to do a partial parody, so bear with me... please...  
  
Oh - and some people are concerned about Clarice interfering in Bulma and Vegeta's relationship - I just want to ensure you that she won't.   
  
I mean not really, anyway.  
  
And also, Komadori called to my attention that Vegeta knew about the planet being destroyed since he was six years old - I just wanna say that this is one of the  
A/U factors.... in this story, he was in his early twenties when he left Vegita-sei. You'll see why later.  
  
And one more thing - I know that some people may have found the T/M thing in this chapter weird, but the story starts out T/M and goes to T/P a loooong time  
from now... I really like T/P, but the T/M part is just so that everyone is happy.   
  
I'll try to get the next chappy out soon. I already have part of it done... and I hope u'll keep reading! What's going to happen in chappy 2? Will they find Vegeta?  
Will Vegeta agree to go back with Clarice? What will Bulma and the others have to say about it? What's going to happen if Vegeta decides that he wants to go  
back? Will the girls get around to telling their stories? Will they get attacked by American guys that decided to take a trip to Paris and accidently got bitten and  
turned into werewolves the size of bears? Find out on the next episode of -   
  
Dragon Ball Z: The Legends of Chaos  
  
  
  
  
PWWWWEEEEEEEEAAAAAAASE Review? *Makes puppy dog face*  
  



	3. Informatory Chapter

PLEASE READ THROUGH AND SUBMIT YOUR VOTE AT THE END: VERY IMPORTANT!!!   
  
  
  
  
  
Hey, guys? Miss me? I didn't think so. Well, I'm sorry, but this isn't really a chapter, but it's to kinda help people understand the story better. A lot of people are  
asking questions about the story, and I just wanted to answer them and get them out of the way so that readers won't have to wait until the next chapter to find  
everything out. This also explains a lot about what is going to happen in the story, but it's not a dead giveaway.   
  
So here we go with the question answering.  
  
1) Um... no, Goku *cannot* beat up Clarice. Not by a long-shot. Very good question, though, because Goku *is* really strong... but Clarice is A LOT stronger.  
*YEAH!!! GIRL POWER!!!* And for all y'all haters, let me just say that there is a reason she's so strong, so don't be mad because he's weaker... it'll be later in the  
story.  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
2) I got one review where someone hated Clarice and wished that Bulma would do something bad to Clarice... But I have a question for u: What *can* Bulma do to  
Clarice? She can't even hurt Yamucha, and he's human. What would she do to an elite saiyan who's like a billion times stronger than the rest of them...?... But... I can  
understand where you're coming from. You guys are probably afraid that Clarice will interfere with the whole B/V thing, right? Well, she won't... not exactly... Well,  
I can't really say anything else or it'll ruin the story. But generally, she really won't. I actually think that most people will like her! Honestly. I mean, I do. She's like a  
cross of Lara Croft (Tomb Raider), Xena (The Warrior Princess), Chyna (The ninth wonder of the world... the wrestler... look her up if u don't watch WWF) and a  
bunch of other people I need to think up. ^_^ Really, she's not that bad.  
  
2b) "But what about the kiss?" you ask? That was just a good-bye thing. If you found a lost lover after about three decades to discover that they've found someone  
else and got married and have kids, I think you'd want at *least* a goodbye kiss, too. Like Clarice said, "Just for old times sake..." And besides, when she let him  
decide whether he wanted to go back or not, she was doing a pretty good thing for him. She deserved that much.  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
3) Okay... to tell you the truth, I really like T/P. I mean... T/M is.... ::squirm::.... uh.... ::fidget:: alright, I guess ::shudder:: but I really prefer Pan to be with him. I have  
nothing against Marron, don't get me wrong, she's alright (except she's the direct opposite of me, personality and appearence wise), I don't have any problem with  
her...  
  
But if she's with Trunks, that's when I have a problem.  
  
The reason I'm even going to include T/M in the story is:  
  
*1) So that I'll get more readers - if I include both sides, then people won't get all prejudiced and stop reading the story because they hate one girl or another.   
  
*2) Because it'll kinda.. be involved in the T/P thing. It'll have sort of an effect on it.  
  
*3) Something really funny is gonna happen on... u guess... while T/M are dating.  
  
*4) The T/P thing can't be all that soon... this is because I think it'll be too complicated to do the SA, make all the Vejitasei stuff happen *u'll hear about that later*,  
and the thing on earth happen all at the same time and plus have to involve the whole romance thing... so it'll be near the end probably, depending on how I fell about  
it and if I'm not over-loaded with other parts ot the story. But I already know when G/B are gonna be together, and it'll be a lot sooner.  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
4) I hate that I_Love_Rainbows_But_Not_You person!! Whoever you are, your stories suck and you can go to hell if you want. Oh sorry, I forgot, you're the  
ring-leader there...  
  
4b) I'm sorry, folks... that was really OOC of me *Out of Character* but I really hate it when idiots like that just go and flame people for no good reason. I mean  
It's stupid, really, because people work hard on writing these stories and then you go and make them feel bad about it, like it's worthless or something... like all their  
work is crap. But since all me and K-chan's other reviews were good... that just proves my point that that... *thing* was wrong, didn't it? ^_^ As long as it's  
constructive critism, like if someone points out something wrong or if there's something they don't like about it, I'll understand. But this person just lashes out at  
people who don't deserve it.  
  
4c) P.S., you homo, when did I say that my nick-name was 'kitty'? Can someone please tell me when I said that?  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
Okay... now that I have that out of my system...  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
5) Sorry, guys, I've babbled enough. Now for the important stuff. Um... what else was there... About the Sonic Adventure thing... This will be like a partial parody  
of the game. It'll be really great, I swear... and I know that some people think that I'm stealing other people's work, but I just wanted to say that I'll give Sonic Team  
their props for the storyline. It's a really great one... the reason that I decided to do this is because I really like the game and DBZ, so why not bring the two things  
together as one? And then, besides all the SA stuff happening, there'll be... lemme see... 1...2...3...4... yeah, about four things going on in the "background".  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
6) Also - since this will be going through the Sonic Adventure thing - I've decided to replace the characters! It's really cool. Like... Dr. Robotnik = Dr. Gero! Isn't  
that wild? ^________^ And the E-100 series of gunner robots that Dr. Robotnik built will be transformed to the E-100 series Androids built by Dr. Gero!!  
*^_____________________^*  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
I'd write out the game booklet's description of the characters if I could and then tell you what DBZ character they'd be replaced by... but that would kinda mess it up  
for everyone. But here's a hint: Some of the SA characters will be played by more than one DBZ character. Like... everyone knows that Tails is a mechanic genius,  
right? So that's an automatic Bulma, you'd think. But his part will actually be played by Bulma, Chi-Chi, and a little bit of Yamucha. That's all I'll say 4 now.  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
But now, *I* have some questions for *u*!!! These questions will actually help me to write the story better, because I'll know what you guys want.  
  
Now... the way that I'll do this is to take ten votes for each question (I'm a Democrat) and majority wins. But I just wanna say that you can only vote once for one  
question.. give everyone else a chance, will ya? ^_^  
  
1) Should I drop the T/M thing?  
  
2) Should I put up more explainatory "chapters" like this to help people better understand the story?   
  
3) Should I put more Japanese in the story? *Remeber, I'll always translate it, especially if it's a long sentance.*  
  
4) Should the new characters be included in the story much?   
  
5) Now this is something that I wanna do, but some people may not like it that much: Do you think that I should put up the character theme songs from the Sonic  
Adventure soundtrack? I'm telling you, this soundtrack kicks some serious ass... I'll put the lyrics up if people vote yes.  
  
6) Will someone *PLEASE* tell me how to put these files in HTML format? I've tried to, but the thing keeps showing these weird symbols and the order of the  
words gets all screwed up... if u can help me, please e-mail me!  
  
7) Should I make the story as descriptive as it is or should I be more... general about it? I like to describe stuff a lot so that people can visualize what I'm talking  
about better. It's easier for the reader that way, but If most people are annoyed by it then I'll stop.  
  
Well, I guess that's all for now. And I just wanna say that u should REALLY give K-chan credit. The story wouldn't be half as good as it is and will be without her.  
You go, girl.  
  
Also... damn, what was I gonna say... oh yeah, I just wanna warn people that there will probably be more questions like this as the story progresses. Just sayin' is  
all...  
  
  
* Presea, where's the last chapter of "We're Just Roommates"? (Great fic guyz, check it out)  
** Emerald, where's the next chapter of "Breath Away"? (Another great fic)  
***I just wanna give a big ol' shout to to Amy, A.K.A. Amythyst, and I just wanna say that I'm sorry, chic... u know what it's about... !_!   
**** Lady Zero, where's the next chapter of "Revenge is Sweet"? (This one is kinda sad, but okay)  
*****Felidae, where's the next chapter of "There Is No Moon Tonight"?  
  
Please review either with a comment on the story or a vote for one of the questions, PLEASE! Thanx.   
  
  
  



	4. Chapter Two: Undecided

Hey!!! Well, here's the chapter that I had to type over... it really sux though, because it isn't worded the same way as the original one, and I forgot a few of the things  
that I wrote... so I'm sorry...  
  
Plus, there may be a couple of things that you remember from a couple of movies, so look out! *^___^*  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 2: Undecided  
  
  
Vegeta woke with a start. He felt strange. What was going on? Why did he feel so dizzy?   
  
'What happened?'  
  
He looked around, noticing that he was in his bedroom. He looked beside him and realized that he was alone.  
  
'Where's Bulma?'  
  
He swung his legs off the side of the bed and suddenly felt his head throbbing painfully. He looked around the room and found that his vision was slightly blurred.  
Shaking his head and immediately regretting it, he got up.  
  
For a moment he felt as if he were swaying around, though he was standing still. He looked out the window and suddenly realized that it was still the middle of the  
night, the stars twinkling innocently in the dark sky. He made his way carefully out of the room, then down the stairs to the kitchen.   
  
The kitchen was completely dark except for a few rays of light, cast by the light of the stars through the curtains of the windows. Vegeta walked over to the fridge  
and opened the freezer, getting an ice-pack and placing it against his head.  
  
Immediately feeling better, Vegeta was about to head back upstairs when he saw something move in the living room. It wasn't a burglar, burglars weren't that fast;  
indeed, even as fast as he was, everytime he was about to get a good look at it, it would blur and disappear.  
  
He felt around for a ki trace, and by the time he felt where it was, it was right behind him.  
  
Pale, delicate hands, covered his eyes, and he felt a soft body press against his.  
  
"Guess who," purred her deep voice.  
  
Vegeta spun around and saw Clarice standing there, a small smile one her face, her hands behind her back.  
  
"What happened?" he asked, his teeth barred in pain.  
  
"Oooh... you don't remember?" asked Clarice suddenly looking worried. She guided him to a chair at the table and leaned against the counter, still watching him.  
  
"Well," she began, "Your 'family' is gone now. They were causing too many problems and they wouldn't let you go back to Vejitasei. And, unfortunately, while I was  
disposing of those vermin, you were caught in the blast..."  
  
Noticing that he was still holding his head, Clarice walked over to him and kneeled in front of him, putting her handson the sides of his face.  
  
Her hands lit up for a few moments and a warm sensation began coursing through him. Why haden't he thought of that before? When she removed her hands, he  
opened his eyes and his vision wasn't blurred anymore.  
  
Clarice smiled and stood up. She grabbed his hand and pulled gently, silently beckoning him to stand. He did, though quite reluctantly, and she immediately threw her  
arms around his neck.  
  
"It's lucky that I got rid of them," she purred, looking him right in the eye. "Now, we can go back to Vejitasei together, you can continue your rein as prince, we can  
continue being together..."  
  
She kissed him passionately, and after a moment of hesitation, Vegeta kissed her back fiercely. Smirking through the kiss, Clarice suddenly shoved Vegeta down  
onto the table and crawled on top of him, straddling his waist.  
  
She began to kiss his neck and moved downward, leaving a trail of hot kisses on his body. She was about to move down to his stomach when she sat up, suddenly  
looking fearful of something.   
  
"What's wrong?" asked Vegeta, looking up at her beautiful face, which was now stained with dread.  
  
Clarice looked down at him, her eyes full of terror.   
  
"I think she's starting to suspect something," said Clarice, even more fear in her eyes.  
  
Vegeta was even more confused now.  
  
"Who?" he asked.  
  
Clarice suddenly had a sinister smile on her face. She leaned down over him, her face moving through a patch of darkness.  
  
Vegeta recognized the blue hair and eyes immediately.  
  
"Your wife," said Bulma.  
  
  
~*~*~END DREAM~*~*~  
  
Vegeta sat bolt upright, covered in cold sweat. He looked around the room, then looked beside him. There was Bulma, sleeping peacefully. She wasn't dead.   
  
He sighed with relief, then cursed. 'Damn that Nazomi,' he thought. It was her fault he had that dream. 'Correction, nightmare.'  
  
It actually *was* her fault - she'd made him take her to see 'Scary Movie 2' for the umpteenth time ("It'll make you feel better!" she'd said).   
  
Sighing, he relaxed and laid back down. He smiled at the peaceful expression on Bulma's face, then wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close to him as  
he could, resting his chin on her head. Still asleep, she snuggled closer to him and rested her cheek on his neck.   
  
Vegeta smiled, glad that she was still with him, and he too fell into slumber.  
  
  
* (+= * =+) * (+= * =+) * NEXT DAY * (+= * =+) * (+= * =+) *  
  
  
Vegeta blinked and groaned; the sunlight that was piercing through the white curtains had hurt his eyes. It was morning.  
  
He suddenly whipped his head around to see that Bulma was missing. He wsa about to panick when the smell of food drowned his nostrils. He heard her heard her  
speaking to someone in the kitchen.  
  
He sighed deeply, immeasurable relief taking place of his panick. He dressed quickly in a gray t-shirt and khaki pants and made his way down to the kitchen.   
  
He walked into the room to see Bulma making breakfast as Bra sat at the table, a magazine before her.  
  
"Hey, Princess," he said, walking over to where Bra was sitting and looking at the magazine. "What're you reading about?"  
  
Bra gaped at him, completely confused. Sighing and giving him one last confused look, Bra looked back down at the CosmoGirl magazine.  
  
"It's about permanent makeup," she explained. "It's like tattoos on your face, except it's supposed to look like makeup that just stays on forever. People get it for  
their lips, eyes, cheeks..."  
  
"I honestly don't know why someone would do that to their face," said Bulma, flipping a pancake. "That's horrible."  
  
"No it's not," countered Bra. "It's a time-saver. If you were going out on a date, you'd never have to worry about your make up getting ruined. All you'd have to  
worry about is your hair, your nails, your clothes..."  
  
Bulma laughed and shook her head. "I still don't think that it's a good idea," she said.  
  
Bra "hmphed". "I think it's a great idea," she said.  
  
Bulma opened her mouth to retaliate, but instead squealed with surprise as two strong arms wrapped around her waist from behind.  
  
She giggled. "Someone's in a good mood," she said as Vegeta kissed her neck.  
  
"Hey, kid in the room," said Bra loudly, not looking up from her magazine.  
  
Vegeta smiled and let go of Bulma, walking back over to the table and sitting down.   
  
Vegeta was already in deep thoght when he felt someone watching him. He looked up to see Bra gazing at him, biting her lip.   
  
"What?"  
  
"Huh? - Oh, I was just wondering," she said. "...Why are you in such a good mood all the sudden?"  
  
Suddenly Bulma turned from and leaned against the counter, her arms crossed.   
  
"I've been thinking the same thing," she said matter-of-factly.   
  
Bra suddenly looked back and forth from parent to parent, then muttered "Eeeeewwww...." before crossing her arms and paying even more attention to the  
magazine.  
  
Bulma gave Bra a confused look before looking at Vegeta and raising an eyebrow.  
  
"*Is* that the reason that you've been so happy lately?" she asked, looking surprised.  
  
"...Partially," said Vegeta.  
  
Bulma pouted playfully and turned back to the food.  
  
Bra turned to the 'Celebrities' section of the magazine and sucked her teeth loudly when she saw a full-page picture of Trunks, grinning broadly with the title  
"Luscious Lavender" next to it. She turned the pages and saw the that the article went for a full three pages before ending.   
  
"Is something wrong?" asked Bulma.  
  
"No," said Bra, ripping the pages out of the magazine and crumpling them up. "Well... I gotta go and get ready. Me and Marron are going to the mall, and I promised  
I'd pick her up - plus, I saw the cutest pink sequin tube-top..." said Bra, getting up and heading up the stairs.   
  
Bulma half-laughed and half-sighed, then got some plates to set the table with. She turned to get some more dishes and jumped about a foot into the air when she  
saw Vegeta standing in front of her.  
  
"I told you not to do that," she said, a small smile on her face as she clutched her chest, trying to catch her breath.   
  
"I wanted to help," he said, looking sorry.  
  
"Giving me a heart-attack isn't going to help me very much," she said, playfully punching him in the ribs. She walked over to the cabinet and handed some more  
dishes to him, which he set at the table.  
  
"So tell me... what *have* you been so happy about lately?" she asked, handing him a few more dishes.   
  
Vegeta set the dishes at their place on the table and suddenly looked extremely grave.   
  
"...You'll find out soon enough," he sighed before walking out of the room and heading up the stairs, as if to avoid further enquiry.   
  
Bulma stood where she was for a moment, surprised by his sudden retreat. 'I wonder what's wrong with him,' she thought.  
  
It had all started about two weeks before - Vegeta'd started acting strangely nice to everyone. He wasn't much nicer in the beginning, but as the time went by, his  
"kindness" was becoming more and more noticeable. Even the other day, after sparring with Goku, Vegeta'd congratulated Goku on his skill and said that he'd done  
a good job.   
  
Goku, even more confused than he already was, thought that maybe he'd hit hi on the head one to many times a bit too hard.   
  
'You have to be patient,' thought Bulma. 'He said that he'd tell you sooner or later. ...And even if he doesn't,' she tought, this time a mischievous smirk growing  
across her face, 'I'll get it out of him some how...'   
  
*---*---*---*---*---*---*  
  
Vegeta paced around the bedroom, panicking. What was he going to do? Clarice said about a week or two, and today was the second week from the day she'd  
arrived on earth. His time was almost up.  
  
No matter how much he'd tried, he couldn't bring himself to come to a final decision. He was desperate. He was willing to do anything to come to a decision, but no  
matter what he did... he would always end up changing his mind back and forth from Earth to Vejitasei, from 'Family Man' to the Prince of Saiyajins, from husband  
to ruler of a planet, from being constantly disrespected by people weaker than him to being feared and respected by people stronger than he was...  
  
He sighed with frustration and distress. There was no way he was going to make the decision by that night.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
*-T-*-H-*-E-*---*-L-*-E-*-G-*-E-*-N-*-D-*-S-*---*-O-*-F-*---*-C-*-H-*-A-*-O-*-S-*  
  
Hey! How'd ya like this chapter? I know it sucked... but as I said, it got erased and I had to write it from memory.   
  
And then guess what - I couldn't use the computer for a while because we were moving! Yup, We're moving from Boston, Massachusets to Jacksonville, Florida.  
My mom packed up the computer, so I couldn't get my hands on it for a while...  
And as many people may know, FF.net has been down for a while...  
  
So what will Vegeta do? Will Bulma ever find out? Will Clarice come back to get his decision?  
  
Find out this and more later on -  
  
The Legends of Chaos!  
  
  
  
  
  
  
P.S. Hey, duz anyone watch Smackdown or Raw Is War? YAAAAY!!! MY man The Rock is back!! And he got a new haircut and his theme song has a new  
beat and didn't he just look FINE in those leather pants that he was wearing on thursday?! *^____________^* Ohhh, he looks soooo good in leather... I love him  
to death, I'm glad he's back, and I'm glad that he stuck with the WWF... no offense to ECW and WCW lovers * ';' * but I started watching the WWF first and I'm  
gonna finish with it, they're my peeps. I just don't really like the others. *But again, if u like the other two, no offense, this is just my opinion.*   
  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
~Valerie~ *  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
And hey, if u like any of the wrestling federations, a review represents the one u like! Please review! *Hehehe, my latest scheme to get more reviews* 


	5. Chapter Three: Out of Time

Chap 3: The Decision  
  
  
Hey, y'all. That's all I have to say.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Bulma yawned, exhausted. She was in Trunks's office, doing left-over paperwork for him ("Mom, I'll make it up to you, I swear!"). She yawned again, beginning to  
nod off. She felt so stressed out with everything going on in her family... Vegeta was keeping something from her, Bra had been acting strangely ever since she'd  
gotten home from the mall with Marron, her parents had run off again, and Trunks was running around doing God knows what.   
  
'I wish my parents were here,' thought Bulma. Her parents had gone on a cruise in Majorca without telling anyone, but her mother had called her from the dock and  
told her that they would be arriving home that weekend. She wished that she could just run off for awhile whenever she wanted to, too... but she had too much to  
take care of for that type of thing.  
  
'I wish that I could go somewhere far, far away... and forget all about work...' thought Bulma with a sigh.   
  
She got up and stretched, yawning again. She walked around the large desk and over to another table at the other side of the office and poured herself some coffee.  
  
She was about to take a sip when she noticed some pink lip-stick on the side of the glass. She sucked her teeth loudly. 'Trunks has GOT to stop bringing his little  
'friends' in here.'  
  
She got another mug and filled it to the brim with coffee. She made sure that there was plenty of sugar in it ('I think I need a sugar rush...') and walked back over to  
the desk, sipping it and thinking.   
  
Despite everything that was going on, Bulma had one serious thing on her mind: Vegeta. Since that morning, he'd been getting more and more upset. He seemed to  
be anxious about something, and she wished that he'd tell her something. At least give her a hint.   
  
And worst of all, whatever this was, it was really getting to him. He was looking older and older by the moment, and she even saw a few actual gray hairs. There  
were lines below his eyes, and she even managed to hurt him, which she thought was impossible. All she'd done was jab him in the side playfully like she always had  
done, but to her horror, Vegeta had groaned and began rubbing the sore spot on his ribs as he walked away, not saying a word.   
  
He hadn't even eaten breakfast that morning, either. After "helping" her with the dishes and retreating, he was about to go out the door when she inquired him on  
eating something.   
  
For a few minutes, he'd just stared a her, then grabbed the sides of her face and gave her a long, passionate, searing kiss.  
  
Then he left.  
  
Bulma, bewildered and a bit dizzy, just stood rooted in the exact same spot for about ten minutes.   
  
And he seemed to fear the night. She didn't know why, him being a night person and all, but she found him sitting on the roof, staring at the sun, as though he were  
afraid of the fact that it would soon meet the horizon and disappear.   
  
She decided that she would have to get him to tell her what was going on. Seeing him under so much stress was killing her, not to mention the fact that he seemed to  
be completely helpless about it.   
  
She sighed and returned to the paper work, though her mind wasn't far off from her mate. 'Vegeta, why won't you tell me...?'  
  
Just as she was about to begin writing again, the door of the office burst open.   
  
She didn't even look up at him, she was mad at him for playing hookie again.  
  
"Mom, thank so much for doing this, I really appriciate it-" began Trunks, breathing heavily.  
  
"You'd better, Trunks Briefs. I'm not doing this again. You have to learn to take responsibility for this job! You can't just go off doing whatever you want whenever  
you want-"  
  
"I know, mom, I'm really sorry, but I'll make it up to you..."  
  
Bulma finally stopped writing to look up at him, her eyes full of anger and disappointment.  
  
"Trunks, I don't want you to make it up to me, I want you to start taking this job seriously, you understand?" she asked.  
  
Trunks nodded, looking downward. He could understand how she felt, this was the third time that week that he'd run off. He could tell that she was really upset with  
him.  
  
Bulma put the pen down and got up.  
  
"Well, I finished all of the financial reports, all you have to do now is the progress report."  
  
Trunks nodded and plopped down into the leather chair.  
  
Bulma grabbed her coat and was about to walk out the door when she stopped.  
  
She turned to Trunks and watched him as he bagan to write rapidly, his pen flying across the paper.  
  
Trunks could feel her eyes on him and looked up at her, expecting her to say something.  
  
When she continued to stare at him, he asked nervously, "Uh... did you want to tell me anything else, mom?"  
  
She nodded. "Promise that you won't keep *serious* secrets from me, okay?"  
  
At first, Trunks looked confused, but the pleading look in her eyes made him answer her.  
  
"...I promise," he said after a moment.  
  
She smiled happily and closed the door as she walked out of the room.  
  
Trunks, completely bewildered by her sudden request, shook his head and went back to work.  
  
  
**************************************************************************************  
  
  
Bulma drove home in her air car, only slightly paying attention to the road ahead of her. 'As soon as I get home, he's telling me what's going on.'  
  
The reason that she was so bent on trying to figure out what his problem was was because of the fact that he'd never seemed to be so helpless or upset before. 'It  
has to do with that ki, it has to be. That's when he started acting weird.'  
  
She arrived home, still pondering the situation. She looked up at the roof, a sound had caught her attention. She looked up and could see a pair of legs hanging over  
the side of the roof. She recognized the black jeans and realized that Vegeta had been sitting up there since she'd left.   
  
A look of sadness came over her features as she walked to the door and unlocked it, steping inside. She smelled something very good coming from the direction of  
the kitchen. Well it wasn't Bra cooking, that was for sure.  
  
Confused and suspicious, she walked cautiously to the kitchen door and peered inside.  
  
"Mom? What are you doing here? I tohught that you were in Majorca," said Bulma when she saw the blonde woman standing and stirring the rice on the stove.  
  
"Yes, but your father got into an argument with someone.." Mrs. Briefs "tsk-tsked" and shook her head. "So how were things while we were gone?"  
  
"Alright... has Vegeta come down since I left?"  
  
"Where did you go?" asked Mrs. Briefs, suddenly realizing that her daughter hadn't been home.  
  
"I had to take over for Trunks," said Bulma exasperatedly.   
  
"Oooohhhh," said Mrs. Briefs, suddenly looking slightly excited about something. "Okay."  
  
Bulma blinked a few times, trying to figure out why her mother was suddenly happy about it.  
  
"So did Vegeta come down?"  
  
"Um... once," said Mrs. Briefs, looking thoughtful. "He asked your father if he knew where that old Scouter thingy was."  
  
That caught Bulma's attention.  
  
"What? Did he say what he needed it for?" she asked frantically. Now she knew that it *definately* had to do with the ki that had been lingering around two weeks  
before.  
  
"No," said Mrs. Briefs as shee continued to stir the rice. "But he really seemed to want to find it..."  
  
Bulma sulked and walked slowly over to the table, getting more and more agrivated. Why was he doing this to her? She'd told him that he could tell her anything, but  
he didn't seem to believe her.  
  
"...Mom?" said Bulma quietly, unsure that she should ask her mother about it.   
  
"Yes, sweetie?"  
  
"...Have you ever felt that... that someone close was keeping a secret from you? A really serious one?" she asked quietly.   
  
"Well yes," said Mrs. Briefs. "You."  
  
Bulma laughed. "But this is different," she said, becoming serious again. "I think... I think that Vegeta's hiding something really big from me."  
  
Mrs. Briefs turned around to face Bulma, looking confused. "Well have you tried asking him about it?" she asked.  
  
"Well, I want to, but I... I dunno, I just feel that if he wanted me to know then he would've told me already. If he wants to keep it to himself... maybe I should  
respect that..."  
  
Mrs. Briefs snorted. "Yeah, right," she laughed. "Marriage is a two way thing - if something is affecting him this much, he should know to tell you about it, because  
maybe it'll affect the whole family. If he doesn't love you or trust you enough to tell you about it, then he can just-"  
  
Mrs. Briefs stopped when she realized that Bulma was staring at her, her eyes wide with shock.  
  
"Uh... ::ahem:: What I ment to say, sweetie, is that you should talk it out with him-"  
  
"Where the hell did *that* come from?" interrupted Bulma before she could stop herself.  
  
"Oh, well... your father and I had an argument in Majorca... don't ask," she added.  
  
Bulma laughed. "So... you think that I should make him tell me about it?"  
  
"Well that's your decision, dear," said Mrs. Briefs as she checked on the chicken. "If you think that you should know about it, ask him. But if you feel that he has a  
right to keep something to himself for once, then don't ask him. Let him deal with whatever it is himself."  
  
"Wow, that was a lot of help," said Bulma sarcastically. "I want to know, but I can't keep prying into his buisness like this everytime I suspect something..."  
  
"Well... I can't make the decision for you. That decision is ultimately between you and your conscience... so I'd say that you should think about it."  
  
"Yeah... thanks, mom," said Bulma as she picked up her purse and headed up the stairs to her room.  
  
'I just hope that Vegeta comes to me about this before I have to go to him...'  
  
She opened the door to the bedroom, and turned on the light. She almost screamed when she saw the black-clothed firgure standing in front of the window, but  
recognized the spiky hair and calmed down.   
  
Not knowing how he would react to her being in the room, she walked quietly over to the bed and set her purse down, keeping an eye on him the whole time. Even  
though Vegeta wasn't doing anything, Bulma was becomming more and more anxious. He was being eerily still; he didn't even appear to be blinking or breathing.   
  
Deciding to take a chance, she walked up behind him slowly and silently, hoping that he wouldn't blow her head off.  
  
She lifted a hand, hesitated, then put it on his shoulder gently.  
  
"...Vegeta, are you alright?" she asked quietly.  
  
Vegeta jumped when he heard Bulma's voice, he didn't even realize she was in the room.   
  
"Oh, uh... I'm fine," he said before looking out the window again.  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Bulma. "You've been acting pretty strange lately..."  
  
"I'm sure," he said, his voice bordering a whisper.   
  
Bulma sighed and walked over to the other side of the room, giving up hope that Vegeta would ever come out with it and tell her what was going on.  
  
She cast one last hopeless look at him before entering the bathroom to take a quick shower before going to bed.  
  
Vegeta looked down. He sighed and looked at his watch, wanting to cry when he saw what time it was.   
  
'Eleven-fifty-nine...' he thought sadly. 'Time's up.'  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
So what's going to happen? Time is up! Will Clarice come to him to get an answer? Will she drag gim back? Will Bulma ever find out about what's going on? Will  
Clarice really kill everyone like in Vegeta's nightmare?   
  
Find out on the next episode of-  
  
Dragon Ball Z: The Legends of Chaos   
  
~Valerie G.  
  
P.S. On the Informatory chapter thing, guess what! I only got TWO voters, people! TWO VOTERS!! Does anyone else care about what goes on in the story? If  
you do, please vote! PLEASE! Here are the results:  
  
(If I don't get anymore votes before the end of next week, I'm going to go along with these two and make my own decision about what happens on the half/half  
ones!)  
  
Question One: Should I drop the T/M thing:  
Votes: Both votes are YES  
  
Question Two: Should I put up more explainatory "chapters" like this to help people better understand the story?   
Votes: One vote YES, one vote NO  
  
Question Three: Should I put more Japanese in the story? *Remeber, I'll always translate it, especially if it's a long sentance.*  
Votes: Both votes are YES  
  
Question Four: Should the new characters be included in the story much?   
Votes: I think both were YES...  
  
Question Five: Now this is something that I wanna do, but some people may not like it that much: Do you think that I should put up the character theme songs from  
the Sonic Adventure soundtrack? I'm telling you, this soundtrack kicks some serious ass... I'll put the lyrics up if people vote yes.  
Votes: One vote YES, One vote NO  
  
Question Six: Will someone *PLEASE* tell me how to put these files in HTML format? I've tried to, but the thing keeps showing these weird symbols and the order  
of the words gets all screwed up... if u can help me, please e-mail me!  
Votes: Neither knew how  
  
Question Seven: Should I make the story as descriptive as it is or should I be more... general about it? I like to describe stuff a lot so that people can visualize what  
I'm talking about better. It's easier for the reader that way, but If most people are annoyed by it then I'll stop.  
Votes: Both votes were YES  
  
  
So pleez keep voting! I need to know what to do, people!  
  
~Valerie  
  



	6. Chapter Four: Discovery

Whattup.  
  
  
  
  
Chapter Four: Discovery  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.  
  
  
Bulma sighed as she climbed into bed. Vegeta was peering out the window as if he was expecting something. He looked even more worried now.  
  
"...Vegeta, maybe you'd better come and lie down," said Bulma in a very worried tone.   
  
Vegeta looked down and nodded, closing his eyes. He sighed, then began to get undressed. Once he was in his boxers, he climbed into the bed and laid down on  
his back, staring up at the ceiling.  
  
Bulma smiled and hugged him gently, glad that he was finally relaxing.  
  
"...Vegeta, if something's bothering you, you can tell me," said Bulma in a gentle voice, her hand stroking his arm softly.  
  
"...No, everything is going to be alright... everything is going to be just fine..." said Vegeta as though he were in a trance, turning away from her and lying down on his  
side.   
  
Bulma, extremely alarmed by his strange answer, decided that she'd let him get some rest (both physically and mentally) before asking him again.  
  
Though she tried, Bulma couldn't fall asleep. Vegeta's strange anxiety was getting to her too, and she couldn't get her mind off of it.   
  
She sighed, wishing that Vegeta wasn't so secretive and would tell her what his problem was.   
  
She sighed again, still wide awake. She lay there, staring at the wall across the room, and if she weren't thinking so hard she would have noticed that the absence of  
Vegeta's usual snores meant that she wasn't the only one still awake.   
  
  
  
~*~*~NEXT DAY~*~*~  
  
Bra groaned as her alarm clock went off. She turned over and put the pillow on her head, trying to drown out the annoying sound. 'Why did mom ever build that  
thing?' she thought bitterly.  
  
The alarm clock was a new model built by her mother, made especially for Trunks, who always had a problem getting up for work. Bra wasn't surprised, him  
bringing girls home every other night, it wasn't a really big shock that he didn't get much sleep.   
  
She wished that she could turn it off, but she couldn't - that was the special thing about it - it had to be de-activated by a special password that only Bulma knew.  
She'd even made them ki-resistant, ever since Trunks and Vegeta blew up the first two models.  
  
Not even bothering to get up, Bra picked up the clock and threw it out the open window next to her bed.  
  
She turned over and was about to fall back asleep when she heard a thud. She turned over to look at the floor where she heard the sound and almost cried.  
  
The alarm clock was back.  
  
Sucking her teeth, she got up and picked up the small, blue clock. She walked over to the window, raised the clock high above her head, and -   
  
"Pan? what the hell are you doing here?" she shouted, looking down at the twenty-year-old.. "It's eleven o'clock in the morning! Don't you know that I'm not up  
yet?"  
  
Pan, who was looking up at the window, laughed.  
  
"Actually, it's twelve," said Pan. "And you *should* be up! Remember, we have 'plans' to finish up. And besides, I don't think that your mom would appreciate you  
throwing her clock out the window like that-"  
  
"Oh, cram it," yawned Bra, just realizing that the clock was still ringing. "I'll be ready in a minute. I think Grandma's downstairs, she'll let you in."  
  
"Alright."  
  
Bra yawned again and walked into the bathroom, the clock still in her hand. She filled the sink up with water and dropped the clock into it, dulling the sound greatly.  
  
She sighed with relief and took off the over-sized night-shirt, stepping into the shower.   
  
She didn't know whether it was the pelting beads of water that stung her eyes, or if it was her tears. She couldn't stand it anymore, it was killing her...  
  
As planned, she and Marron had gone to the mall the morning before, Bra still searching for the pink, sequin tube-top. When the cashier had told her that a strange,  
blonde girl had already bought it, she was heart-broken. Marron, feeling sorry for her, had offered to buy Bra some ice-cream to make it up to her.   
  
But while in the food court, to make matters worse, Marron spotted Goten sitting at a table with a red-head. Knowing about Bra's long-time love for him, she tried  
to pretend that her wallet was missing and she couldn't pay for the ice-cream. While frantically pushing Bra away from the Brigham's store, unfortunately Bra had  
turned and saw Goten and "The Bimbo" sitting at the table.  
  
For a moment, she'd been paralyzed, tears streaming down her face, but when Marron tried to calm her down, Bra pulled away from her and took off running.  
  
Marron found Bra in the parking garage, sitting on the ground with her back against the car, sobbing violently.  
  
Bra snapped back to reality, remembering that she was in the shower. She got out and wrapped the dark green bath-robe around her, tying the sash.  
  
She looked down into the sink, where the clock was still ringing, causing the surface of the water to ripple. 'Waterproof,' she thought bitterly. 'Leave it to mom to  
think of everything...'  
  
Leaving the clock in the sink, she got dressed and headed down the stairs to see Pan sitting at the table, drinking soda. Bra heard a sound, and when she looked out  
the window, sure enough, there was Mrs. Briefs, watering her plants and humming the tune of "Mary Had A Little Lamb".  
  
Bra smiled and walked over to the table and sat opposite Pan.   
  
"So, are we done yet?" she asked, crossing her arms.  
  
"Um, I think so... did Trunks pick up the cake last night like he was supposed to?" asked Pan, taking a notebook out of her book-bag.  
  
"Yeah. He said that mom yelled at him for leaving work, though," said Bra thoughtfully.   
  
"Well this is going to make up for it," said Pan, checking the word "cake" off of her list.  
  
"Did you guys get the decorations from the mall yesterday?" she asked, looking back up at Bra.  
  
"N-no," said Bra, tears welling up in her eyes at the memory of Goten kissing the girl.  
  
"What's wrong?" asked Pan, putting the pen down. "Did something happen yesterday...?"  
  
"No," lied Bra. "I'm fine. I just wish I'd gotten there earlier for that tube-top..."  
  
Pan knew that Bra was serious about fashion, but she knew that Bra wasn't *that* serious about it.  
  
Pan gave Bra one last look and sighed. "Well... I can pick up the balloons, I'll ask Nazomi to get the streamers and stuff... did Marron invite everyone yet?"  
  
"She *better* have," said Bra suddenly. "We can't call everyone today and expect them to come here tonight. They might already have plans."  
  
"Well I'll call her later and make sure then. .. but who exactly *did* she invite, anyway?"  
  
"Oh, probably a bunch of Mom's old business associates," said Bra, looking exasperated.   
  
"Oh," said Pan, looking disappointed. "But... hey, what if she invited the Sukaros? Remember Andrew? Mr. Sukaro's son? He was *really* cute..." sighed Pan  
dreamily.  
  
"Don't forget Evan," added Bra. "If she didn't invite them, I'll kill her myself."  
  
Pan laughed and crossed "Decorations" off of her list.   
  
"Alright... all we have left is 'Refreshments' and 'Music and Entertainment'," said Pan. "...What the hell? Who put that on the list?" she asked, a look of utter disbelief  
on her face.  
  
"I think Nazomi did. She said something about wishing Nelly could perform, but I didn't catch what she said," said Bra thoughtfully. "I won't have any problem  
picking up the refreshments. And... put together, everyone must have like over three or four hundred CDs. We should be able to find *something* that mom would  
like... do you have a Ricky Martin CD? I think mom likes him..."  
  
"Not-a-one," said Pan. "But I think Marron must have one. She likes him a lot..."  
  
"Alright, that's one. We need a lot more than that," said Bra. "What about Aerosmith? She's crazy about Aerosmith-"  
  
"I have every CD they've ever recorded," said Pan, writing "Aerosmith - Me" below the words "Ricky Martin - Marron".  
  
"Oh my God - guess who else she likes," said Bra, looking shocked.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Kid Rock," said Bra.  
  
"What? I thought she didn't like him," said Pan, looking confused.  
  
"I thought so too until I heard her singing 'Cowboy' in the car," explained Bra. "And she was humming to the tune of 'Fist of Rage' the other day."  
  
"...Alright then," said Pan. "Who has a Kid Rock CD?"  
  
"Nazomi's got to have one."  
  
"Alright," said Pan, scribbling more songs down.   
  
"She likes Ja Rule," said Bra.  
  
"Really?" asked Pan. "I like him too, I just never expected her to..."  
  
"She especially likes the new one with Ja Rule and J-Lo," commented Pan.  
  
"I can't get enough of that one."  
  
"What else is there? Oh, Sting, she likes Sting...."  
  
The two girls continued to drone on, finding different types of music to play at the party. Finally, when they were done, they had a pretty good list:  
  
Ricky Martin - Marron  
Aerosmith - Me  
Kid Rock - Nazomi  
Dido - Bra  
Linkin Park - Goten  
Earth, Wind, and Fire - Piccolo  
No Doubt - Videl  
Faith Hill - Chi-Chi  
Destiny's Child - Nazomi  
Bare Naked Ladies - Goku  
Monica - Me  
Ja Rule - Nazomi  
Jennifer Lopez - Videl  
Sting - Mercy  
Dazz Band - Nazomi  
Smash Mouth - Goku   
Christina Aguilera - Marron  
Mariah Carey - Chi-Chi  
Limp Bizkit - Juuhachigou  
Toni Braxton - Chi-Chi  
Green Day - Trunks  
Uncle Kracker - Marron(?)  
Incubus - Yamucha  
Red Hot Chilly Peppers - Trunks  
Fuel - Juuhachigou  
3 Doors Down - Goten  
  
"Wait a minute," said Pan, looking a few of the Artist's names' over. "A few of these have to go."  
  
"Why?" asked Bra. "We'll have enough time to play them all-"  
  
"It's not that," said Pan, crossing out "Linkin Park". "It's just that if a bunch of Bulma's associates are going to be there, we don't want to play a bunch of music where  
every word is some type of curse. I mean come on, these people are old," she said, crossing out "Limp Bizkit".   
  
"Yeah, you're right," said Bra. "So.. what about Red Hot Chilly Peppers?"  
  
"We can play part of the CD, but not all of it," said Pan, putting a star next to it. "I don't think that they would like 'Californication' too much."  
  
They continued to fix everything, calling people and checking off various lists, even making sure that Goku hadn't eaten the cake that Trunks had picked up the day  
before - he'd left it at the Son house so that Bulma wouldn't find it.   
  
"This is going to be great," sighed Bra. Just great..."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Vegeta sighed. His time had been up long before, so had no way of knowing when Clarice would pop up and ask for his decision. And worst of all, he hadn't even  
made a decision! As much as he thought about it, he couldn't find one thing that would be better than the other. They'd kept in touch as she awaited his answer, but  
nothing more. He sat up and reached over to the night stand where the phone was. He picked up a pad of paper and pencil which was usually used to take down  
messages and began to make a list.  
  
STAYING ON EARTH: PROS   
1) Will get to stay with Bulma, Bra, and Trunks  
2) Will get to protect earth from any future threats, if any  
3) Won't have to deal with father  
  
STAYING ON EARTH: CONS  
1) Clarice may be killed  
2) Won't be able to prevent father from attacking earth again  
3) Will miss being Prince  
4) Father may send someone else to look for me  
  
GOING BACK TO VEJITASEI: PROS   
1) Will get to be Prince again  
2) Can prevent more attacks on earth  
3) Clarice may not be killed  
  
GOING BACK TO VEJITASEI: CONS  
1) Will miss everyone  
2) Will have to deal with father again  
3) Bulma, Trunks, and Bra would be left alone  
  
*Hey, I know it's a dumb list, but I wasn't feeling very creative at the moment.*  
  
He sighed. Every decision he made seemed to even out at the same level with it's opposite, making it harder for him. Vegeta looked down at the list and memorized  
it quickly, then tore it out and destroyed it so that Bulma wouldn't find it. If she did... well, who knew what she'd say about it.  
  
'That's it,' he thought. It was the moment of truth. He had to make his decision now. He would force himself to. This depression was tearing him apart, he couldn't  
handle it any longer.   
  
He racked his brain, digging deep inside of his mind to find out which one he wanted more. As much as he loved his home planet, he couldn't live without his family...  
but he did love being Prince and ruling Vejitasei...   
  
His decision was made.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dryphus sucked her teeth in frustration.  
  
"Do you *have* to do that all the time?" cried the blonde saiyajin, cursing because her bottle of deep blue nail polish fell over and was now spilling all over the  
control panel.   
  
She was referring to Clarice, who was just doing some light training because she was bored. Her punches, kicks, and sudden shouts of "HA!!" were driving Dryphus  
insane, who was trying to do her nails. She sat in one of the armchairs before the vast controls, her legs crossed.   
  
"No, actually," said Clarice. Despite her response, she continued to jump and leap, trying to defeat an undefeatable opponent: her own shadow. *And REMEMBER  
the British accent... I know that some people may find it annoying that I keep reminding u, but the reason that I do is because even *I* forgot about it when I was  
reading the chapter over. So remember.*   
  
Dryphus had come to visit her because she'd been interested in what Clarice had said about earth; and she was even more interested in the fact that it still even  
existed.   
  
Clarice had also even told her about Vegeta and her ultimatum - Dryphus didn't agree with it, but Clarice could trust her not to tell anyone. Dryphus was one of her  
best friends, the other being Mason, and they were always faithful to her.   
  
"Geeze, calm down," said Dryphus, grimacing. "I swear, if you acted anymore masculine, you'd *be* a man."  
  
Clarice looked hurt. "I don't act masculine," she said in a tiny, feeble, whiney voice.   
  
"Well when you're training you are," said Dryphus, correcting herself. "You can't compete with your damn shadow, it moves at the exact same pace as you do. It's  
like trying to get out of the way of a mirror before your reflection has a chance to move."   
  
Clarice laughed, but sat down in a chair a few feet away from Dryphus's, who was now blowing lightly on her nails, trying to get them to dry quickly.   
  
"View-port, on," said Clarice, the volume in her voice slightly loud. The extremely large screen before them suddenly flickered on, showing the view in front of the  
ship: a beautiful, exotic jungle, festooned by a breath-taking array of colors during the sunset.   
  
Dryphus, who was putting nail-polish on her other hand, looked up at the vast screen and looked shocked.  
  
"This planet only has one sun?" she cried, looking amazed. "Well God-damn, now I've seen everything. Every other planet that I've been to has at least two. Now all  
you'd have to say is that they only have one moon, and I'll..."   
  
She looked up at Clarice, who looked back at her and nodded.  
  
"Are you serious?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
Dryphus shook her head and contined to coat her nails with the dark liquid.   
  
"Ya know, you said that Vegeta's time would be up last night," said Dryphus thoughtfully. "Shouldn't you go and ask him what he's going to do?"  
  
"No," said Clarice, her voice firm. "If he'd already decided, he would've told me."   
  
"Does he even know where to find you?" asked Dryphus.   
  
"He does," said Clarice, still staring up at the view-port, "Besides, I only moved so that his friends wouldn't come looking for me."  
  
Dryphus "Hmphed". "Just kill them already," she said without looking up.  
  
"I'm not going to kill them," said Clarice, her voice sounding as solid as steel. "I haven't even met any of them yet."  
  
"You *want* to?!" asked Dryphus, sounding appalled.   
  
"Well... actually no," said Clarice, realizing this for the first time. "But there *is* one person that I want to meet above the others."  
  
Dryphus knew who she was talking about immediately.  
  
"You mean his wife? Are you going to hurt her?" cried Dryphus, sounding hopeful.  
  
The older saiyajin scowled. "No," she said, and the tone in her voice said that it was final.   
  
Dryphus rolled her eyes and fell back into the chair, crossing her legs again.   
  
*As you can probably tell about Dryphus's personality, she's a violent blonde air-head. ^_^ She's not in super-saiyajin mode, her hair was just like that.*  
  
She looked out the view-port and noticed that the sun was sinking behind the trees, night was falling.   
  
"...What country are we in?" she asked suddenly.  
  
Clarice, startled at her sudden interest in earth, thought for a moment and answered. "Costa Rica. There's a lot of jungle here, I thought that it would be a good  
hide-out..."  
  
"Oh... kinda reminds you of the Mystic Ruins, doesn't it?" said Dryphus, her eyes fixed on the screen.  
  
"Actually... it does," said Clarice. She hadn't even thought of it that way. "All it needs is the cliff at the end and the ruins of the temple in the middle of it..."  
  
Dryphus smiled, but suddenly got an idea. "Do you think that we can see them from here?" she asked excitedly.  
  
Clarice stared.  
  
"Well the ship is hooked up with a tele-communicater, and this planet has sattelites with cameras in them. We could try to override the sattelite system and use the  
camera to get a glimpse of them..."  
  
"You're sick," said Clarice. "I don't want to spy on them-"  
  
"Aw, c'mon! I haven't seen them, and I can't just go over there and ask them who they are. And my tail would be a dead giveaway, and-"  
  
"Fine! Stop babbling..."  
  
Clarice sucked her teeth and began typing furiously on one of the many keyboards on the control panel. She looked up the screen, which had suddenly changed  
from the beautiful rain forest in front of them to a grid of the space outside of earth.   
  
She located on sattelite that was hovering right over the north-western hemisphere of the earth, almost directly over Japan.   
  
Humming quietly, she continued to type rapidly and soon the sattelite was under her control. She pin-pointed to camera controls and was soon zooming in on the  
country.  
  
She stopped when she had a skyline view of Satan City, not wanting to go any further.   
  
"I don't feel right about it," she said as Dryphus opened her mouth to ask why she'd stopped. "I don't like spying on people if there isn't a good purpose for it."  
  
"Well there *is* a good purpose! You're best friend wants to see the 'long-lost' Prince!" said Dryphus. "...Please?"  
  
Clarice glared at her, and Dryphus pouted her lip.  
  
The older saiyajin sowled. "Do whatever you want," said Clarice suddenly, getting up from her chair, "But I don't want any part of it."  
  
Dryphus grinned and jumped into Clarice's chair as Clarice walked out of the room. She pressed a button on the key board, zooming in even more.  
  
'Look at all of those weaklings,' she thought savagely as the citezens of Japan became more clear.   
  
Suddenly something occured to her.  
  
"Clarice! Yo, Miss Commando! You didn't tell me where they lived!!" cried Dryphus; Clarice was already quite far from the main control room.   
  
Clarice suddenly appeared behind the chair and muttered "Capsule Corporation," bitterly before disappearing again.   
  
Dryphus looked up Earth on the galactic map, then Japan, then Capsule Corporation. The map pointed her directly in the direction of the large estate.   
  
She smirked and punched a few more keys, hoping to get a good view of the building. She could soon see the roof of a house over a few trees, then she moved the  
camera a bit more upward, then downward to the left.  
  
'Better,' she thought. What she didn't know was that the sattelite could magnify sound, too. Suddenly a blue car drove to the front of the house and the door opened.  
Quite interested in who it could be, Dryphus leaned forward and payed very close attention to the screen before her.  
  
A boy, who didn't look any older than maybe twenty-five or twenty-six, stepped out of the car with a large, white, plastic bag in his hand. She couldn't see exactly  
what was in it, but the semi-transparent bag told her that whatever it was was very colorful.  
  
The boy looked around a few times, then turned to get something from the car. When he stood up, Dryphus gasped.  
  
'He's cute... for a human,' thought Dryphus. 'He's muscular, too...'  
  
Dryphus's eyes narrowed in suspiscion, then she took out a scouter, though this was new model - it was smaller, for one thing, it looked like a pair of small  
headphones, a microphone protruding from the left ear-piece to the front of her mouth, and a very small, rectangular screen that was no bigger in length than her  
pinky finger, and about as wide as a bottle cap.  
  
The tiny, tiny screen suddenly turned blue, shining the saphire-colored light on her face as she pressed a button on the right ear-piece. Small numbers began to move  
rapidly across it, then landed on one number: 687.   
  
Dryphus gasped. 'He's way too strong to be human...'  
  
She pressed a few more of the miniscule buttons on the right side of the Neo-Scouter and the numbers scrambled again, jetting from bigger to smaller, then a few  
letters popped up. She pressed one more button, a purple one this time.   
  
The screen turned red and this time letters popped up on the screen. The words "Saiyajin/Human" were on the screen.  
  
'What?' she tought. 'That can't be right...'  
  
She ran another scan on the person and it turned up the same. She was about to go and ask Clarice about it, but then decided not to bother her. Just then, a girl  
came running out of the house and stopped in front of the car.   
  
"Did you get the decorations?" asked the blue-haired girl.  
  
"Yeah," said the spiky-haired boy, handing the bag to her. "Do you think that the confetti was too much?"  
  
"Nah. Hey, do you think think that when she walks in that we could dump it on her or something?" asked the girl excitedly.  
  
"Uh... I don't think she'd like it too much," said the boy.   
  
'Well he *looks* like he could be saiyajin,' thought Dryphus. She snapped back to the screen and paid attention as the girl began to talk again.  
  
"...Don't you have the strangest feeling that we're being watched?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
'It's getting late,' thought Bulma tiredly. 'Maybe I should call it quits for the night....'  
  
She yawned and got up from her office chair, stretching. She decided to start working again because she wanted something to keep her mind off of Vegeta's  
problem. But unfortunately, it didn't work; and now everyone was running off and doing something, she wasn't sure what, though. All day, people kept running in and  
out of the house, making calls, and she really didn't know what to make of it. And worse, they seemed to be avoiding her.  
  
Bulma turned the light off, leaving the office darker except for a few rays of light that came from the window. She sighed and grabbed her purse, heading towards the  
door. Suddenly there was a loud knock.  
  
She stopped dead. Who would still be in the building at this time of night? How did they get by the clearence without the security officer notifying her that someone  
was coming up to see her? *Why* would they want to see her?   
  
She snapped back to reality when the person knocked on the door again, this time banging on it a lot harder.  
  
"Wh-who is it?" called Bulma.  
  
The person didn't answer.  
  
"...Hello?" cried Bulma, moving back toward her desk; she had a gun in one of the drawers that she'd always kept for protection.  
  
There was still no reply.  
  
"I-I'm warning you, I'm armed-"  
  
Just then, the door came crashing down, torn right off it's hinges, a couple of small flames on the side of it. Bulma tore her eyes away from the door to look at the  
intruder.   
  
She'd never seen the woman before. The mysterious (and very sinister looking) woman had black hair and very pale gray eyes. That was all she could see,  
considering the darkness of the room.  
  
"...Wh-Who are you?" asked Bulma feebily. She didn't know why, but even the fact that she had a gun didn't comfort her.   
  
The woman gave a low, amused laugh.  
  
"I," she said, taking a step towards Bulma, "Am," she took another step, this time stepping on the fallen door, making her appear taller, "Your," she took another step  
forward, this time steeping off of the door, "Worst," she again moved forward, "Nightmare."  
  
The woman disappeared. Bulma held the gun out in front of her, both of her hands shaking violently. 'Where'd she go?' thought Bulma, panicking. By now, she'd  
begun to breath more heavily, her heart doing a drum-roll on her ribs. She kept turning wildly, pointing the gun left and right, trying to find the intruder.  
  
Just then she felt a presence behind her. Bulma held her breath as she turned, slowly, to the person that stood there.   
  
Suddenly she breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
"Oh Kami, Vegeta, I'm so glad that you're here," said Bulma breathily. "A woman just broke into my office and I think that she was going to kill... me..."  
  
Bulma stopped when she saw Vegeta's face. He had a stern, emotionless look on his face.  
  
"...V-Vegeta, are you... are you alright?" asked Bulma backing away from him a little bit. "Vegeta, you're scaring me..."  
  
She noticed that his eyes weren't focused on her anymore, but on something behind her. She turned to see the woman again, standing with her arms crossed.   
  
The woman smirked. "Do it."  
  
Bulma, stared, wide-eyed, at the woman, wondering she could've meant by that. Suddenly she felt something wrap around her neck painfully, squeezing harder and  
harder.  
  
She turned to see Vegeta, his cold eyes giving her immeasurable fear. He was choking her.  
  
"Vegeta...::cough:: Please... stop ::sputter:: Don't... ::whimper::..stop..."  
  
At this point, Bulma wasn't even speaking anymore, just whispering. All she could do was hang there, limp, as his hands tightened around her throat. She almost  
screamed with pain as her neck-bone broke in two, her hands gripping his wrists tightly as the gun lay forgotten on the floor.  
  
Bulma started to feel faint. Her eyes suddenly began to cloud over with blackness. She blinked a few times, trying to clear her vision, but the black cloud was taking  
over. Her eyes began to close, but she forced them to stay open.   
  
Bulma could feel Vegeta's grip on her neck loosen. 'What's happening?'   
  
Suddenly she felt the worst pain she'd eveer felt in her life - she wasn't sure what Vegeta was doing, but the pain began to envelope her entire body, burning her from  
the outside in.  
  
He let go of her, sending her falling to the floor. She forced her eyes open and saw a bright flash of light; Vegeta was charging up a ki blast to finish her off.   
  
If he was saying anything, she couldn't hear it, because she suddenly felt as if two pillows were being pressed over her ears, muffling all sound. 'I guess this is what  
dying feels like,' she thought miserably. The last thing she saw was the woman, standing behind Vegeta and laughing before the white-hot ball of light enveloped her  
body...   
  
  
~*~*~END DREAM~*~*~  
  
Bulma woke from the chair she was sitting in, breathing heavily. She looked around the room and realized that it had been a dream. 'Bulma, now you're having  
nightmares about this Vegeta situation... you *have* to ask him about it as soon as you get home.'  
  
She looked at her watch. It was only six o'clock.  
  
Deciding that she would have to get it over with, Bulma got up from her desk and grabbed her purse and began to walk towards the door when there was a loud  
knock.  
  
'Oh, no...'  
  
Not wasting any time, Bulma ran over to the desk and got her gun, which was fully loaded. Holding the gun out in front of her, too ready to pull the trigger, Bulma  
walked slowly to the door and called fiercely, "Who is it?"  
  
"It's me, Mrs. Briefs," called a jolly voice. "You've been up here for a while, I thought I'd bring you up some coffee."  
  
Bulma sighed and walked over to the door, it was only the old security officer named Ben. She wrenched the door open and let Ben inside, relieved.  
  
"Thanks a lot, Ben," said Bulma, smiling. "I thought that-"  
  
She suddenly noticed the look of terror on Ben's face. She turned around and looked behind her, expecting someone to be standing there, but there was no one. She  
turned back around, confused, to face the old man.  
  
"I-I'm s-s-sorry M-Mrs. Briefs, I-I didn't m-mean to bother y-you-"  
  
"What are you talking about?" asked Bulma, even more confused. "Ben, is something wrong?"  
  
She stared at him for a moment, then followed his gaze down to her hand. The gun sat in her grip, her finger still on trigger.  
  
She bursted out laughing. "Ben, this wasn't for you," she explained. "When you knocked on the door, I thought that you were someone else. I would never shoot  
you."  
  
"O-Oh," said the old man, though he was still shaking a little bit.  
  
Bulma put the gun down on a small, round table in the corner of the office and walked back over to Ben.  
  
"I'm really sorry. It was nice of you to bring out the coffee," said Bulma, trying to calm him down a little bit. She didn't want him to have a heart-attack.  
  
Ben laughed a little bit. "I'm sorry for thinking that you'd shoot me," he said.  
  
She waved her hand in dismissal and Ben left, shaking his head and muttering something about "Kids these days."  
  
Bulma suddenly remembered that her original plan was to go home and ask Vegeta about his problem, so she grabbed her purse and was just about to leave when  
she saw the gun again.  
  
'Better take it, that dream could have been a premonition.'  
  
She put the gun in her bag, just for protection; even if her nightmare wasn't going to come true, there were still dangers around.   
  
She said goodbye to another one of the security officers, Stanley, as she walked out into the parking lot. Suddenly a strange sense of foreboding washed over her as  
she stepped out onto the cold pavement. She shivered slightly, she was being watched. But by who?  
  
*In case you think it's Dryphus, it's not.*  
  
Shivering slightly, she walked quickly to her red air-car. It was then that she noticed a motorcycle that she'd never seen before. It was all black and looked  
brand-new. She looked at the license plate, then smiled. The license plate read "3LLR" on it; it meant "Thriller". 'That's clever,' she thought.   
  
*Author's note: That's the license plate I'm getting on my motorcycle, don't copy it please.*  
  
She started the car and drove out of the parking lot quickly, anxious to get home, and completely oblivious to the roar of the motorcycle engine that had started as  
soon as her car had exited the lot.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Bulma was finally home. Now she would get straight down to buisness and ask him what was going on, and if he didn't tell her, she'd... she'd.... she didn't even know  
yet. But she had to at least try.  
  
Wondering why the house was so dark, she searched through her purse for her house-keys. 'Was that a motorcycle?' Sighing and dismissing the sound, she got out  
her keys and unlocked the door. Stepping inside, she noticed that inside the house was a lot darker than it looked from the outside.  
  
'Oh no...'  
  
Suddenly she heard someone breathing heavily from the doorway. Was her dream coming true?   
  
"Hehehe... surprise," rasped a voice from behind her.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Hey!! Did you like this chapter?! I hope so!! I know it was stupid, but hey, I made it longer to make up for those pitifully short chapters before this one. And guess  
what... I just read over chapter 1 and I was like "What have I *DONE*?!!!" That chapter just seemed soooo stupid, I swear... there are so many things that I would  
have changed about it, had I been writing it now...  
  
What else... oh, and I apologize for waiting so long to post these chapters up. I already told you about the whole scenario *is that the way u spell it?* with chapter  
two... I seriously think that my computer got messed up by that "Code Red 2 Worm Virus" or whatever it is thing that the FBI is talking about because this thing just  
keeps getting more and more messed up and now it's going berserk.  
  
Now, for the questions that will haunt you forever (or at least until I get the next few chapters up):  
  
Who was at the door behind Bulma? Who did the motorcycle belong to? Was the owner of the motorcycle following Bulma? Will Clarice ever get an answer from  
Vegeta? If so, what will the answer be? Whoever bought that pink sequin tube-top that Bra wanted? Will Dryphus tell anyone about what Clarice is doing? What's  
going to happen to Clarice if she goes back to Vejitasei "empty-handed"? And why do they keep having dreams about Clarice killing Bulma - Is it a death omen, or  
just a coincidence? Find out on -   
  
Dragon Ball Z: The Legends of Chaos  
  
  
  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
~Valerie~ *  
~*~*~*~*~ 


	7. Chapter Five: It's My Party and I'll Cry

Hey... I started writing this chapter right after I posted up the other three chapters.... so if it took a long time to post it up, something obviously went wrong...

Chapter Five: "It's My Part and I'll Cry If I Want To, Lie if I Want To, Die If I Want To"

*To explain the chapter name: **Cry** is on Bulma's part, **Lie** is on A bunch of people's parts, and **Die** is on Clarice's part.*

****

WARNING: IF YOU DID NOT READ THE OTHER CHAPTER SEVEN THAT I REPLACED, THE ONE AFTER "OUT OF TIME", PLEASE READ IT BEFORE READING THIS!!!!

Bulma spun around, her face full of terror to see a tall figure standing behind her, their sharp teeth and green skin shining eerily - 

Wait, _green skin_?

Bulma recognized the person immediately and sucked her teeth. Suddenly, all of the lights flickered on and she heard hundreds of voices shout "Suprise!!" from behind her.

Bulma turned to see an extremely large amount of people, she estimated five or six hundred, standing before her. The house (or at least as far as she could see) was decorated with streamers, balloons, banners that said "Happy Birthday, Bulma!", confetti, etc. 

She turned to look at Nazomi.

"Why did you scare me like that?" she asked, slight anger in her voice.

"What can ya say? I like to freak people out," said Nazomi, shrugging.

"You must get that from your father," Bulma laughed. "I used to always be afraid of him." 

Nazomi smiled and gave her a hug, murmuring "Happy Birthday, Busy Bee." 

Bulma returned the hug and turned to the crowd of people behind her, her face full of surprise and awe. She hadn't even remembered that it was her birthday, which made the party even more of a surprise.

Then something occurred to her. 

'So that's what they've been doing,' she thought. 'I can't believe that I actually yelled at Trunks for this...'

She saw a familiar group of people standing in front of the crowd - Marron, Goten, Pan, Bra, Chi-Chi, Trunks, Goku, Gohan and Goten, and the rest of the Z Warriors - all with happy grins on their faces.

"I... I don't know what to say," said Bulma said, laughing. "Thank you..."

They were grinning even more widely at this, and they each gave her a hug before ushering her into the crowd.

"This is great," said Bra as she watched her mother being greeted by another group of people. "It's a success so far, and she really seems to be enjoying herself."

"Yeah," agreed Pan. "...So _did_ Marron ever invite the Sukaros?" she asked suddenly, looking around. 

"Hey, you know what? I think that she did," said Bra. "Where _is_ she...?"

They set off to look for Marron as the DJ, posted on a large platform at the other side of the room, began to play the music. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Oh, hello, Mr. Ohojii!" cried Bulma, giving him a hug. "Long time no see!"

"Yes, it _has_ been quite a while," said the white-haired man, smiling. "Yes, it has... so how is your company doing?"

"Oh, great, but it's not the same without you there," she answered; he'd retired about a month before.

"I'm happy to here it," he laughed. 

"...Well... Can you excuse me for a moment?" asked Bulma. "There's someone that I have to speak to..."

"Sure," said Mr. Ohojii, still smiling. "Oh, cheese puffs..."

She watched the old man make his way to a long row of tables with food on them and laughed, then turned back to the person she wanted to see.

Vegeta was standing in a far corner of the room, his hands in the pockets of the black pants that he was wearing. He was even wearing the shirt that she'd once picked out for him - a red, silk shirt with long sleeves that fit him perfectly, slightly showing off his muscles. A couple of the top buttons were left open.

Bulma smiled - he said that he'd never wear it, and she thought that it lay in the closet, forgotten. She began to make her way to the other side of the room, when someone grabbed her arm.

She turned to see a tall man, his hair slightly graying, grinning at her. 

"Oh, hello, Jack," she said politely. "Could you excuse me for a moment? There's someone-"

"Bulma, what has it been, three years?" he said, his silky voice aggravating her. "Look, there's someone I want you to meet," he said, about to pull her over to someone else.

"Look, I'd love to meet whoever it is, but I need to talk to someone..."

But when Bulma looked over to where Vegeta had been standing, he was gone. 

__

'Where could he have gone?'

"Bulma, meet Miranda, Miranda, meet Bulma," said Jack, pulling Bulma from her thoughts. She looked next to him to see a blonde girl that couldn't be more than twenty-five years old standing next to him, in a tight, red dress that just barely covered her over-large chest.

Bulma felt like beating Jack's head off - she'd dated him once while they were in college, and ever since she'd broken up with him, he'd done whatever was in his power to try and make her jealous - this included showing off his young girlfriends to her whenever he had the opportunity, much to her annoyance. 

"Hello, Miranda," said Bulma curtly. "It's very nice to meet you. But can the two of you please excuse me? I-"

"Well Bulma," said Jack, looking around the room, "Where's your husband? I haven't had a chance to meet him yet."

"He's..." Bulma looked around desperately, trying to locate her mate. "He's..."

She suddenly felt two strong arms wrap around her from behind, giving her a warm hug.

"Happy Birthday," whispered Vegeta before kissing her on the cheek.

"This," said Bulma, grinning broadly, "is my husband. Vegeta, meet Jack, Jack meet Vegeta."

The smug look on Jack's face faltered at the sight of Vegeta, but he quickly replaced it, smirking. 

"Nice to finally meet you," said Jack in his silkiest voice. 

"Same here," said Vegeta, grinning a grin that showed off his razor sharp canines, frightening Jack more than he already had. He extended one arm to shake Jack's hand, the other one still wrapped around Bulma's stomach.

Jack smirked and extended his hand too - and he almost screamed in pain as Vegeta's hand tightened significantly around his, straining it just to the breaking point.

Vegeta finally let go of his hand, still smirking and replaced his arm to it's place on Bulms'd waist.

"And this is Miranda," said Bulma, who hadn't noticed what had just happened.

Vegeta looked over at the blonde. He hadn't noticed her there, but he smiled nonetheless and nodded to her in greeting. 

"Miranda... w-what do you s-say we go... to..." Jack was try to get Miranda's attention, but she was staring at Vegeta, looking him up and down.

"Miranda," said Jack a bit more loudly, obviously becoming angry and embarrassed. "Let's go."

"I'm not going anywhere with you," she snapped suddenly, turning and walking away from him haughtily. 

"Miranda, wait!" cried Jack, going after her. Bulma and Vegeta watched them, and Bulma suddenly started laughing. 

Vegeta smiled and leaned down to whisper to Bulma.

"I'm going to go and get some air," he whispered before letting go of Bulma, much to her disappointment. She turned to ask him to stay with her a few more minutes, at least, so she could introduce him to a few more people, but when she turned, he was already gone.

~*-T-*~^~*-H-*~^~*-E-*~

Vegeta walked out onto the deck behind the house, into the slightly chilly night air. He breathed deeply, letting the oxygen fill his lungs, letting it linger for a moment before exhaling. 

He'd come out here to get some peace - but what a fat chance that was, he could still hear the loud music from inside the house, the buzz of people talking, a buzz that sounded more like a hoard of angry bees. 

He leaned against the railing, his elbows on it as his hands hung over the edge, dangling carelessly. 

He sighed. This was getting out of hand. After he'd made his decision, it seemed to make too much sense, he wondered why his mind hadn't just jumped to it the night Clarice had arrived on earth. It seemed so simple, the decision, that he thought that maybe the only reason it'd taken him so long to make it was because he missed his home planet, but hadn't thought through the entire situation clearly, his mind clouded with both possibilities.

He looked up; his vision directed towards the fireflies that had begun their nightly dance, weaving and bobbing through the air gracefully, little fairies of the twilight.

He smiled - fireflies always reminded him of the night, so long ago, that he'd finally put his pride on the line and told Bulma his true feelings for her, feelings that he'd denied and kept bottled up for months...

His thoughts lingered to his mate, a smile creeping across his lips. He remembered that night, as vividly as though someone had branded it in his mind, in those woods, where he and Bulma had confirmed their bond, where Trunks was conceived...

He heard a soft thud behind him, but didn't turn to look at her. How she knew he was there was beyond him, he'd been keeping his ki down - but then again she _was_ a trained assassin, trained to find her target no matter what the circumstances were.

But after a few years into the profession, Clarice quit, even though she was going on to being one of the best of her kind, having never failed once - she didn't want to kill people if there wasn't a good reason for it. Of course, on Vejitasei, this was something that showed extreme weakness, but the renegade shinobi never cared what anyone else thought.

And to that day, even if murder wasn't on the agenda she had in mind, she never failed to find - and corner - her target. 

__

'Maybe that's why father sent her after me.'

He turned to Clarice and leaned back against the railing, but he still didn't look her directly in the face. The memory of the nightmare was still vivid in his mind, and each time he tried to tell himself that Clarice would never stoop so low as to kill anyone he knew personally, the thought of what his sub-conscious mind had conjured up for her to say seemed to glisten and shine even more, becoming more vivid, more clear, as though begging him to believe that it was the truth. 

__

'You just have a wild imagination,' he thought, bringing himself to look up at her. 

When he did, he wanted to both laugh and say "Well Done" at he same time.

Clarice seemed to be wearing all leather - she had on black leather boots, black leather pants, and a black leather jacket. The only thing that she didn't have on that was leather was the t-shirt she had on, which had a large, shiny, imprint of a bunny head on it. Whether the shirt was supposed to be as tight as it was or if it was too small for her, he didn't know.

And her hair, instead of it's usual high, thick ponytail, was in a French braid that reached the base of her spine, her tail wrapped around her left leg. 

She didn't say anything, she just waited for him to talk to her. She was pretty sure that he knew why she was there, and he was the only one that had to say anything, so she wouldn't speak until he did. 

"Where'd you get the clothes?" he asked curiously, his voice drowned in half- amusement, half wonder.

"Dryphus bought them." She knew better than to tell him, but he would know if she were lying. *Yo, you damn well have better not forgotten that British accent! ^_^*

"She's here too?" he asked, though he didn't sound surprised. 

Clarice nodded. "She won't tell anyone, she swore to it. If she does, I'll kill her myself."

Vegeta gave a very brief, very quiet chuckle. 

"...Can I ask you a question?" asked Clarice looking down at the shirt she was wearing.

"Go ahead," said Vegeta.

"What the _hell_ is _this_?" she asked, pointing to the bunny-head silhouette. "I don't understand it. Is it some type of trademark or something...?"

"It's the Playboy logo," said Vegeta, completely amused at the look on Clarice's face. 

"What?" she asked, looking more confused. "What's a 'Playboy'?"

"It's a magazine," he said, wanting to laugh. She was so smart, yet so naive. 

"About what?" she asked. 

"...Uh... photos," he said. 

Clarice sighed and shrugged her shoulders, then leaned back on the railing, mimicking Vegeta's position. It was then that he noticed something large and shiny in Clarice's hand. It was all black.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing at the object in her hand. 

"Oh... motorcycle helmet," she said.

"You have a motorcycle?" he asked incredulously. 

"Yes," she said, lifting up the helmet and looking it over with a critical eye, as though judging it. "Dryphus bought that, too."

"Where'd she get the money?" he asked suddenly. "She doesn't have any of the currency on earth, does she?"

Clarice shrugged. "No idea."

"Why did you decide to come now?" he asked out of the blue.

She looked at him, then up at the stars, all of them winking and sparkling. 

"This afternoon, Dryphus was - erm... she was flying over the country, trying to find you," lied Clarice. "She wanted to know if you were really living here. She came back and told me that they seemed to be preparing for some type of festivity." She jerked her head in the direction of the open doorway, noting the party that was going on inside. "I hadn't known whether you'd told anyone or not about your predicament, so I decided that this would be the perfect time to speak to you. I don't think that I would be all _that_ distinguishable from the crowd, so the less anyone noticed me, the better.

"That's where the motorcycle came in," continued Clarice. All of it was true, except for the part about Dryphus flying around and trying to find him - she wasn't about to tell him that she'd been spying on them. "Dryphus said that most of the humans were alarmed by seeing her fly, so of course, I wasn't about to go and start some type of panic by flying also. And of course, I didn't know where you lived, so..." she trailed off, her gaze sweeping the wooden floor of the deck.

"What?" asked Vegeta.

"I decided to follow Bulma," she said, looking back up at him. "I couldn't feel _your_ ki, so I felt around for hers. I remembered what the other half of your son's ki felt like, so it was easy to find her. I waited for her after she got out of work and followed her until I got here, and then waited out here for you. I knew you'd come out," she continued, a grin spreading across her face, "because I knew you'd never be able to resist the moon when it's full."

It was true. Vegeta grinned as he looked up at the pearly white sphere, surrounded by all of it's celestial fellows, the stars. It _was_ a very beautiful night. 

He turned back and smiled. She knew him too well. He looked up at her to see her face full of awe, staring up at the moon, her body showered in the blue light. 

Kami, she was especially beautiful at night, he'd always said it...

...But no matter how beautiful she was, Bulma would always be the most beautiful woman in the world in his eyes.

She looked back at him, then smiled as she noticed that he was staring at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Oh, uh... nothing," said Vegeta, shaking his head and looking away.

For a few moments, everything was silent as death, for it was the moment of truth... both of them could feel it...

Vegeta looked up. He didn't know what her reaction would be, but he thought that if he put it off any longer, it would be worse.

"Clarice... I decided... I decided that I wanted to-"

"I already know what your decision is," said Clarice, smiling.

"You... You do?" asked Vegeta, confused. "But how?"

"I'm insulted," she said teasingly. "As long as we've known each other, you don't think that I'd know you well enough to figure this out?"

She laughed at the confused look on his face. 

"Just because we were separated for a while doesn't mean that I've forgotten anything about you..."

She trailed off as her gaze fell to the ground, a sad expression on her face. 

"I knew, Vegeta, because..." she let out a long, drawn out sigh, trying to find the right words to lace her explanation together.

"Well... I knew that if it took you _this_ long to make your decision that you obviously care about these people very, very much," she said, her eyes turning to look in at the party, all of the laughing, dancing people, and the loud music. 

"And... That's how I knew. I knew that you obviously cared about them too much to leave them."

So she did know. 

Vegeta looked her face - her expression was hard to read, almost non-existent; the same "expression" she'd had when she'd found out about Bulma in the first place. 

He was about to say something when she looked up and smiled, though the smile didn't exist in her eyes, which were saddened.

"I... guess that this is good-bye, then," she said, her voice wavering slightly. 

Vegeta looked down - he didn't know what to say. If she went back to Vejitasei, his father was more than likely to kill her for failing, and he was more than capable of doing it - even as strong as she was, something she'd worked and worked for almost her entire life, King Vegeta was much stronger than she was, something that he had to make sure of to keep his rank of King.

Not that he regretted the decision - of course he wanted to stay with his family, with the woman he loved, even if meant putting up a mean front, but it was all worth it. The only thing he regretted was not being able to do anything about Clarice's fate.

"Well..."

"...Well..."

"I should get going now," said Clarice. "They'll get suspicious."

"Yeah," said Vegeta, feeling guilty, for his decision had not only decided the rest of his life, but the end of hers. 

"Well..."

He looked up as she spoke again, and saw her with her arms out-stretched.

"If we're never going to see each other again," she said quietly, a hopeful look in her eyes. 

Vegeta smiled and complied, wrapping his arms around her and hugging her tightly. 

With a sigh consisting of both sadness and happiness, she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him as tightly as she could without hurting him, her face buried in his neck.

She pulled back and let her hands travel up to his cheeks and kissed him. Vegeta, surprised by the kiss, didn't have time to react, whether it was to return it or stop it.

Clarice stepped back again, a full two feet from him, and smiled. She kneeled down on knee, her hand over her heart, her gaze cast downward. 

She looked back up at him and murmured half-humouredly,

"Farewell, your majesty."

With that, she teleported and was gone.

Vegeta stared at the spot she'd been kneeling in a moment before, then turned and leaned back on the railing again. She was right about caring about them too much to leave them... he couldn't even imagine life without Bulma and the rest of the Z Warriors, no matter how annoying and stupid they were....

__

I don't wanna be, be without ya, be without ya

I don't wanna live, live without ya, live without ya

I don't wanna go, go without ya, go without ya

I don't wanna be alone 

Vegeta sighed, wondering if he'd made the right decision. 'Of course you did,' said a voice in his head. 'But you've given up an awful lot to be with her. That just shows how much you love her.'

He smirked suddenly. He did love her, and he'd given up the saiyajin empire to be with her. He'd been with her too long, and he wasn't about to give up thirty-five years of marriage.

__

When we hooked up

We sat down

Made an agreement

We vowed that

That we'd always

Be together

Through whatever

We said that

No one would ever

Get between us

So love would

Never ever leave us

That was a while ago

He smiled to himself - he wouldn't admit it to her, hell, he half didn't want to admit it to himself, but he did.

"I love you, Bulma."

~*-L-*~^~*-E-*~^~*-G-*~^~*-E-*~^~*-N-*~^~*-D-*~^~*-S-*~

Bra walked around the large room, still in search of either Marron or the Sukaros. As she looked around, she suddenly felt herself bump into something.

Stumbling backward, she spun around and found herself looking into the obsidian eyes of Goten, who's arm was hooked around the arm of the red-head she'd seen at the mall. 

"Oh, hi Goten," said Bra hastily, trying to make a quick getaway. "How are you?"

"Oh, I'm alright," he said, smiling, though he seemed a little bit tired. 

"I'm glad," said Bra, nodding. "Uh.... I'll go, then-"

"Goo-goo, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" whined the red-head as Bra was just about to leave.

"Oh, right - Bra, this is Tiffany, Tiffany, this is Bra," said Goten, smiling from girl to girl. 

"Nice to meet you," said Bra, giving a very forced grin. 

"Same to you," said Tiffany, grinning back. "I love that dress."

"Oh, thanks," said Bra, looking down at the blue dress. "Well, I've gotta go and talk to someone - I'll see you guys later, okay?"

She flashed a grin and turned on her heel, trying to get as far from them as possible.

'I'm not going to cry,' she said. 'Too much mascara... too many people...'

~*-O-*~^~*-F-*~

Bulma walked around, looking for Vegeta, a glass of wine she'd been nursing in her hand. He said that he'd gone out to get some air, but when she'd asked around, everyone had said that they hadn't seen him go through any of the doors.

'I hope he didn't go flying around again...' 

She felt a light tap on her shoulder and thinking it was Vegeta, turned and was about to chastise him for leaving on such short notice, but stopped short.

It was Mercy, looking as stunning as ever in a silver/gray satin sleeveless dress. 

*A/N: Incase you find any typos while Mercy is talking -there aren't any, I checked - I just thought that with the accent, that's the way she'd pronounce whatever she was saying.*

"Oh, hi," said Bulma. "I thought you were someone else."

Mercy smiled and said " 'Appy, Bairthday, Boolma," before giving her a gentle hug.

"Thanks... did you know about this the whole time?" asked Bulma, suddenly wondering just how many people knew that the party would take place.

Mercy nodded, a guilty grin on her face. "You desairve eet," she said. "I've noteeced zat you 'ave been vairy... 'ow do you say... 'straissed out' lately..." 

"Oh, you've got that right," said Bulma, smiling back. "This family is getting to be too much to handle. I'm getting too old."

"Zat eez nonsense!" cried Mercy, looking horrified. "You are not old at all!"

"Mercy, "I'm sixty-two."

__

"C'est imposible!" spat Mercy, forgetting that Bulma didn't speak French. "_Je ne te crois pas! _You look too young for your age, I would 'ave guessed zat you were thairty."

*Author's Note: _"Je ne te crois pas!" _is pronounced Jeh-neh-te-qua-pah. It means "I do not believe you!"*

"Stop it," said Bulma, a flattered blush crossing her face. 

"Mrs. Briefs, how _are_ you?" cried another person, very enthusiastic to speak to her.

"Oh, hi, Mr. Graden," said Bulma, smiling.

"Hello, Mrs. Briefs! You look absolutely _stunning!_" said the man, shaking Bulma's hand enthusiastically - perhaps a bit _too_ enthusiastically, because Bulma had to use all of her strength to keep from spilling the wine she had in her hand onto the floor.

"And who is this lovely lady?" spoke Mr. Graden through his thick English accent, turning to Mercy.

"Oh, excuse me," said Bulma apologetically. "Mercy, this is Sir Arthur Graden, Mr. Graden, this is Mercy Serafine," said Bulma.

*A/N: I'm sorry, I put too many notes in this chapter, I know - but her last name is pronounced "sarah-feen" incase you thought it was actually pronounced sarah-fine.*

__

"Enchante," said Mercy, raising her hand so that she could shake his. .

"Wonderful to meet you," said Mr. Graden, shaking her hand. 

"Thank you," said Mercy. She suddenly looked over Mr. Graden's shoulder, her face growing serious. 

He and Bulma looked in the direction her eyes were pointed in, and saw Piccolo leaning on the edge of an empty table with his arms crossed, his face down and his eyes closed. He had on black pants and a silvery shirt that seemed to match Mercy's dress. 

"I weell be right back," said Mercy, walking by Bulma and Mr. Graden. Bulma continued to watch as Mercy made her way to where Piccolo was standing. Mr. Graden had begun speaking again, but she wasn't paying attention. Mercy took Piccolo's hands in hers and said something, but Bulma couldn't hear her. Piccolo suddenly glared at her and shook his head. Mercy had a pleading look on her face and said something else, and Piccolo's expression softened, but he still shook his head no. Mercy scowled, but gave him a kiss on the cheek and walked away. 

"What was that about?" muttered Bulma quietly to herself.

"I say, who is that man?" said Mr. Graden suddenly, as he gaped at Piccolo, trying to figure out what Bulma was staring at. 

"That's Piccolo," said Bulma. "He's her husband."

"Tall fellow, isn't he?" said Mr. Graden, apparently un-phased by the fact that Piccolo was green, before turning back to Bulma.

"Yeah..."

Mercy suddenly walked right up next to Bulma and "hmphed", her arms crossed. Her face was flushed with anger and her lips were pursed, making them look very thin. 

"Um... Mr. Graden, could you get us some more drinks?" asked Bulma, handing him her glass. 

"Oh, yes, of course," said Mr. Graden. "I was just going to do that myself, I was."

He walked away, humming some type of made up tune.

Bulma turned back to Mercy. "What happened?" she asked, concerned.

"It eez Peacollo," said Mercy, her face still flushed. "'E weell not talk, 'e weell not eet, 'e weell not do anyzing I ask 'im to. 'E weell no even dance with me..." 

Her expression suddenly saddened and her face fell.

"Hey, I'm sure it's not _you,_" said Bulma truthfully. "God, I don't think Piccolo would like dancing with anyone _period_," she said, looking at his mean stature.

Mercy laughed softly, but her eyes were still cast downward.

Just then, Mr. Graden returned with the drinks.

"Oh, why so glum?" he asked Mercy, seeing her expression.

She sighed, glanced slightly in Piccolo's direction, then looked at the floor again and said "Nozing."

"Well _something_ has to be wrong," said Mr. Graden. "I don't think that an angel such as yourself should have anything to cry about."

Mercy looked up, blushing.

"Oh, vairy funny, Meester Graden," said Mercy, still blushing. 

"Seriously," he said, smiling. "I think-"

"Dad!"

They all turned to see a young, handsome man making his way through the thick crowd, heading in their direction. 

*A/N: Just imagine an... an Antonio Banderez type person... ::drool:: ^_^*

"Dad, you have a phone call," he said, handing Mr. Graden a green/blue cell phone.

"Well there's far too much noise in here," said Mr. Graden. "I'm going to take this outside. I'll be right back."

He turned and headed for the front door, pushing through the crowd with all the strength an old man could muster, holding the phone above his head.

"Well then... oh Mercy cheer up," said Bulma as she turned to see Mercy 's face still covered in sadness.

"What happened?" asked Mr. Graden's son, noticing the look o her face too.

"Her husband," said Bulma without thinking. "He's not really a party person, and she's kind of upset about it."

"Well that's too bad," said the young man, giving her a sympathetic look.

"Uh, Mercy, this is Daniel, Daniel, this is Mercy," said Bulma.

"Hi," said Daniel, grinning broadly, a grin that would make a girl faint.

"Haillo," said Mercy without even looking at him.

"...So... uh... great party," said Daniel, looking around and trying to make conversation. 

"Yeah, it is," said Bulma. "I think that Bra got the 'party-planning-gene' from me."

They both laughed, but Mercy wasn't paying attention to them - she was watching Piccolo.

"Oh, uh.. Daniel, could you get us some punch?" asked Bulma suddenly.

"Oh, um.. sure."

__

"Mercy! You are stinking up my party!" cried Bulma, slapping Mercy on the arm. "I cannot have fun knowing that someone's depressed! It just crashes the mood."

Mercy "hmphed", which sounded more like she'd given a short, quick breath through her nose. 

"Maybe I should leave, zen," said Mercy, sighing. "I do not think zat zair eez any chance of my mood improving..."

"Sure there is!" cried Bulma, smiling. "Just dance with someone else, dancing always makes everyone feel better... and I think your daughter's already discovered that..."

Mercy's face snapped upward to look at Bulma, confusion covering her features, then she turned in the direction that everyone seemed to be looking in. Mercy gasped and her hands flew over her mouth, stifling her laughter.

There, in the middle of the dance floor, were Nazomi and Goten, both dancing so erratically that the rest of the dancers had cleared a large space for them, fearful of serious injury.

Both of them seemed to be dancing in the same style, if it could be called that - they just seemed to be jerking different parts of there bodies around and tossing their heads, Nazomi's hair creating a maroon cloud around her head whenever she turned her face. 

Bulma glanced in Piccolo's direction, and saw that he too was watching them - his face was a mix of both horror and amusement.

The song ("Up In Here" by DMX) finally ended, and Nazomi and Goten finally stopped "dancing". They looked up and to their surprise, there was loud applause from the crowd - everyone thought that it was funny. 

Nazomi and Goten, both having a good sense of humor, greeted the crowd - Goten began bowing, flourishing his hands, as Nazomi curtsied and blew kisses to everyone.

Mercy laughed as Nazomi walked over to where they were standing, her face still a bit flushed from dancing so wildly. 

"Zat was wondairfool," said Mercy, grinning broadly.

"Thanks," breathed Nazomi. "But why aren't you doing anything? It's a party, just let loose!" she cried, moving around again in a dancing motion. 

Mercy laughed. "You're right," she said quietly. 

Daniel came back with the drinks, a smile on his face.

"Daniel, this is Nazomi, Nazomi, this is Daniel," sais Bulma automatically. 

"Hay," said Nazomi, grinning.

"Hey."

"So... oh bah, they're playing slow songs now," said Nazomi, looking disappointed. "I gotta go get someone to dance with... mom, cheer up," said Nazomi, rubbing her mother's arm before walking to the other side of the room, obviously having spotted a boy that seemed to be alone.

"....." Bulma looked at Mercy, who seemed to be considering something . Suddenly she stood up straight and turned to Daniel. 

"Would you like to dance?" she asked, smiling.

Daniel looked a bit surprised at first, but then smiled. "Sure."

Mercy grinned and grabbed his hand, leading him out to the dance floor. As soon as they had a good spot, Daniel wrapped his arms around her waist, and Mercy put her arms around his neck, her head, resting against his chest . They began moving in a circular motion, rocking slowly from side to side.

Bulma laughed as Mercy winked at her - she knew what Mercy's intentions were now. She was trying to make Piccolo jealous. 

Wanting to dance with someone, Bulma resumed her search for Vegeta - only to be greeted by another eager group of people.

Bulma smiled and sighed, greeting all of her "guests", all enthusiastic to speak with her ("Oh, you look _lovely_ this evening!").

~*-C-*~^~*-H-*~^~*-A-*~^~*-O-*~^~*-S-*~ 

Bra made her way through the crowd, looking for someone she knew even remotely. All of her friends had been scattered, and even standing on her toes to see over the heads of the hundreds of people, she couldn't find a single person that she recognized. 

"Ugh," she moaned in exasperation, being to get tired. "Where could they all be...?"

She was about to give up hope when she saw her mother, surrounded by at least five or six people, all keen to engage her in conversation at the same time.

Bulma just stood there, looking around from person to person as they spoke, a nervous smile on her face as they closed in around her, entrapping her .

Bra giggled at her mother's situation and turned around, looking around for any sine of Nazomi - she hadn't seen where she'd gone after her "dance" with Goten.

Sighing again, she turned - and immediately regretted it. _There_ was Goten, yet again, and Tiffany was whispering something in his ear.

She could do nothing but stare, her eyes brimming with tears. Goten suddenly grinned and nodded, and without warning, turned and looked right at Bra.

Bra froze, then grinned at him, pretending that she hadn't been staring, then turned away, blinking furiously, and began walking in her mother's direction. 

"Yes, and have - oh, who's this?" asked a large, round woman asked Bulma, seeing Bra walk up slowly behind Bulma.

Bulma turned and saw Bra standing behind her, looking slightly depressed.

"Sweetie, are you okay?" asked Bulma quietly, her face filled with worry.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine, mom."

Bulma smiled slightly and squeezed Bra's shoulder gently.

She turned back to the group of people and lightly pushed Bra in there direction.

"This is my daughter, Bra," said Bulma, smiling. "Bra, this is the Karamiti family."

"Hello," said Bra sheepishly, a very forced smile on her face.

"Well aren't you adorable?" said the large woman, smiling. "Mrs. Briefs, she looks just like you."

Bulma smiled and sighed with relief as Mrs. Karamati's husband ushered her away to meet someone else.

"Wow. I thought this party was going to be fun," muttered Bra quietly, more to herself than her mother.

"It _is _fun," said Bulma, wrapping her arm and Bra's shoulders and walking over to a table. "You just don't know a lot of these people. Why didn't you invite some of _your_ friends, anyway?"

"It was Marron's idea," said Bra exasperatedly, sitting down at the table. "She thought that if it was _your _party, we should invite _your_ people..." 

Bulma smiled. "Well, most of these people are my old work associates, so they don't know how to have any fun." 

But Bra seemed to be paying attention to something else. Bulma looked in the direction that Bra seemed to be looking in and laughed - Piccolo had suddenly appeared on the dance floor and tapped Daniel lightly on the shoulder, saying something that they couldn't hear. Daniel smiled and nodded, stepping back and grinning at Mercy before walking away. 

Mercy looked up at Piccolo, a questioning expression on her face.

Piccolo grunted something incoherently and Mercy grinned, a look of utter happiness on her face, and three her arms around his neck. 

Piccolo, looking exasperated, asthough this were the last place he wanted to be, wrapped his arms around her waist.

Both Bra and Bulma "awwwed", smiling.

"That's so cute," said Bulma, grinning. 

Bra nodded in agreement and rested her chin in her hand, her elbow propped up on the table. She looked around the room, then spotted another flash of green - she saw Nazomi, dancing with the discarded Daniel, who had a casual smile on his face. 

"Oooohhh, there are Videl and Chi-Chi," said Bulma suddenly. 

Bra turned to look at her mother, then at the part of the room she was looking at - sure enough, there was Chi-Chi, looking radiant in a short-sleeved red dress (_And she's finally let her hair down!_ thought Bra) and Videl, looking as beautiful as ever in a blue/black dress.

"C'mon, let's go before someone else wants to talk to us."

"Bulma grabbed Bra's hand pulled her through the crowd, towards Chi-Chi and Videl.

"Oh, hi, Bulma!" cried Videl. "We were looking for you." 

"I'm not surprised that you didn't find me," said Bulma. "I was swamped by all these people I haven't seen in _years_..."

"So how's Vegeta doing?" asked Chi-Chi, still smiling. "Did he ever get over his 'depression'?"

"Oh, he's fine now," said Bulma, grinning even more widely. "He even saved me from Jack tonight..."

Bulma suddenly broke into the account of what happened, grinning even more broadly as the story progressed. 

"And she broke up with him right there?" asked Videl, grinning.

"Yup. I guess Vegeta was just going through some type of mid-life crisis or something," said Bulma. 

"_Mid-life _crisis? Isn't he about seventy?" asked Chi-Chi, looking horrified.

"Saiyajins _do_ live longer than humans do," said Bulma thoughtfully. "But I'm glad he's out of his misery."

Suddenly Bulma felt another tap on her shoulder, and turned to see that Mr. Graden was back. 

"Oh, hi!" she cried. "So you finished with the phone call?"

"Yes, I did," he said, smiling. "Where did Daniel go?"

"Oh, I think he's dancing with Nazomi now," said Bulma, looking around. 

Mr. Graden smiled. "And who are the lovely ladies?" he asked.

"Oh, this is Chi-Chi, this is Videl, and this is my daughter Bra."

"The pleasure of meeting you all has no equal," said Mr. Graden, bowing deeply.

"Nice to meet you too," said Videl, Chi-Chi nodding in agreement.

Bra just smiled when he looked at her, slightly nervous.

"I see that (...what was her name?) Mercy and her husband have made up," said Mr. Graden, looking at the dance floor where Mercy and Piccolo were dancing.

"Yeah," said Bulma. "I'm happy for them, Piccolo really keeps to himself a whole lot... speaking of that, where's Vegeta?" 

"Oh, I saw him go out that door," said Videl, pointing towards a door at the far side of the room, which they could just see the woods out of.

"Oh, okay," said Bulma. "I think I'll go and see him..."

"Oh, I'll come with you ," said Mr. Graden, clasping his hands together and bouncing on the balls of his feet. "I've never gotten a chance to meet him."

"Alright."

Bulma began walking through the crowd, Mr. Graden at her heels, speaking about his latest CC project.

"-And I thought that it could be used for Capsule Corporation's technological department," continued Mr. Graden. He was about to continue speaking, but Bulma had stopped in her tracks, causing him to crash into her back and push her forward slightly. 

"M-Mrs. Briefs, are you alright?" asked Mr. Graden, worried. 

Bulma's eyes widened, her face spliced with rage, horror, and fear. 

As she was walking, she'd been able to see more and more of the door as she got closer, and that's when she saw them. 

Vegeta, standing outside on the deck, his arms wrapped around - 

"The... the woman in my dream," croaked Bulma, her eyes widening even more.

"What, excuse me?" asked Mr. Graden, becoming even more worried. "Mrs... M-Mrs. Briefs, do you feel well?"

But Bulma couldn't here him - all she could hear was a strange buzzing in the back of her mind, an angry buzz, a buzz that blocked out all reason, a buzz that clouded her eyes, turning all of her vision red... 

Her face suddenly split into a look of pure rage as the woman Vegeta had been hugging stepped back and kissed him, holding his face with her hands. 

The woman kneeled, said something that Bulma couldn't hear over the buzz of the crowd, the buzz in her mind...

And she disappeared. 

Vegeta turned after a moment and leaned back on the railing, smiling to himself.

Smiling.

__

Smiling.

SMILING.

'Bulma, he's smiling!' cried a voice in Bulma's head. _'He liked that kiss!' _

Mr. Graden watched as Bulma's face scrunched up in a look of pure and utter fury, her eyebrows furrowing downward towards the top of her nose, her nose wrinkling up as her upper lip curled upward toward her nose, her teeth barred. 

"Mrs.-" Mr. Graden was about to ask Bulma if she were alright again, but stepped back as Bulma began breathing raggedly, breathing like a winded rhinoceros.

Now her breaths weren't even breaths anymore, they sounded more like hoarse grunts, each one getting louder. 

Mr. Graden backed up, heading in the direction they'd just come from. He backed into Bra, who yelped with surprise.

Mr. Graden, keeping his eyes on Bulma, felt around blindly behind him and grabbed Bra's arm.

"Ow - Mr. Graden, is something wrong?" asked Bra, looking at Mr. Graden nervously.

"Mrs. - Mrs. Briefs," said Mr. Graden. "Something's wrong with her..."

Bra looked at her mother and noticed this too - as did a lot of people. She noticed that a large group of people near her had stopped their festivities and were staring at her, whispering things like "What's wrong with her?" and "Maybe she doesn't like the party..."

Bulma suddenly opened her eyes, which had been clenched shut, and roared loudly enough to awaken the dead,

"VEGEEETAAAA!!!!"

Everyone suddenly went quiet , even the DJ stopped playing music. Everyone was looking around, wondering who or what she was talking about, wondering why she was so angry. 

"VEGETA, GET YOUR ASS _IN HERE_!!!!"

Bra rushed over to her mother and put her hand on her forearm, stepping in front of her.

"Mom, are you alright?" asked Bra, looking her mother in the face. 

Chi-Chi and Videl followed Bra and stood at her sides. Videl put her hand on Bulma's shoulder.

"Bulma, quiet down," she muttered, her eyes full of concern. "Just calm down-"

But Bulma only gave her a stern, ice cold stare, then wrenched away from the trio and stalked toward the door that led out to the deck, people moving out of her way as she came nearer.

Nazomi suddenly hopped up onto a table near the front door, her hands raised in the air.

"Alright, everybody." she shouted loudly. "The party's over, you ain't gotta to go home, but you sure as hell can't stay here!!"

The buzz of people talking began again as Nazomi jumped off of the table and opened the large oak front doors, ushering people out.

"Yeah, that's it, c'mon..... hurry it up... (hey, put that glass back!).... you too, pal..."

~*-B-*~^~*-Y-*~

Vegeta's heart stopped. Bulma's ki was shooting through the roof.

__

'Bulma?' 

Was that Bulma he'd heard?

__

'No,' he thought. _'It couldn't be...'_

"VEGETA, GET YOUR ASS _IN HERE_!"

He swallowed and turned, walking toward the door of the deck. What could be wrong now? Had...

Had she seen Clarice....?

Worry crossing his face, he walked slowly over to the door of the deck and stepped inside to see Bulma, cutting easily through the crowd to get to him.

Suddenly the room seemed to be much less empty, people muttering and questioning what was going on as they headed towards the door - Nazomi was doing a good job of emptying the house. 

The only remains of people lingering around were friends and family - Trunks was standing in a corner of the room, looking apprehensive - Pan was standing next to a table near the center of the room - Piccolo and Mercy were still standing on the dance floor, Mercy looking anxious, though Piccolo looked intrigued - Marron, Krillin, Juuhachigou, Goten, Gohan, Uuband Goku were standing at the opposite corner of the room, and Bra, Chi-Chi and Videl were still standing where they were when Bulma had roughly discarded them. 

Nazomi suddenly shut the door after the last of the guests left, causing everyone to jump with surprise. 

"Sorry," she whispered.

Vegeta turned to see Bulma standing right in front of him, a look on her face that sent a terrified chill up his spine.

Everyone stood, the tension in the room too thick to even cut with an ax.

For a moment, everyone thought that nothing was going to happen, but a second later - 

__

SLAP.

Everyone gasped - Bulma'd raised her hand and pulled it back as far as it would go, then let it snap forward, slapping Vegeta as hard as she could.

Vegeta staggered backward, his hand on the bruised cheek, a look of horror on his face.

"Bulma, what-?"

"Oh," she said in a menacing voice, "don't you start playing innocent with me!"

Vegeta looked just as confused as everyone else did, trying to decipher what she was talking about. 

"Innocent, what are you talking-?"

"So is _this_ why your mood changed? Is this why you're so damned _happy_ all of a sudden?" cried Bulma, a pained, yet still angry look on her face.

"After everything I've done for you," she continued, her voice cracking slightly, "You have to _cheat on me...?"_

Her voice was barely a whisper as she said the last few words, though somehow everyone heard her clearly. 

"How _could_ you?" she whispered. 

Vegeta looked confused for a moment, then finally realized what was going on.

So she _had_ seen Clarice.... she'd seen him hug her, and she'd seen Clarice kiss him....

And she thought that he was cheating on her.

"Let me explain," he said quietly, grasping her arm firmly, yet gently. "I never cheated on you, I-"

Bulma wrenched her arm away from him, anger in her eyes again.

"Don't you lie to me, you bastard!" she roared, her ki still rising. "That's all you are, just a cruel, lowly, cowardly, heartless, arrogant, selfish _BASTARD!!!_"

She suddenly raised her hand and tried to slap him again - but her hand came into contact with nothing but air.

"Bulma, I didn't cheat on you," she heard Vegeta say from behind her. "I never would, I-"

"Oh, yeah?" cried Bulma, turning to face him, her hand still raised. "Who was she then, huh? What was that hug about? And the kiss?"

"If you give me a chance to explain, I'll tell you everything-"

And she yet again interrupted him, calling him names and screaming insults at him as the rest of the Z Warriors watched, some filled with anger, some filled with worry, others intrigued by the argument. 

Vegeta was beginning to get angry now - he was trying to be calm with her, something that never really came easily to him anyway, but she was testing the small amount of patience that he had left - the two weeks of straining and stressing himself out with the burden of having to decide if he wanted to leave earth or stay had taken up all of his mental energy, and it was all that he could not to throw in her face that he'd given up the Saiyajin Empire to be with her, and that now he was officially no longer the Prince of the almighty Saiyajins. 

He wanted to shove it in her face so badly, just to shut her up and show her that she was completely wrong... but he just couldn't. 

Vegeta grasped her shoulders tightly, a bit less gently than he'd grasped her arm, but not enough to hurt her. 

"Bulma, calm down," he said slowly and clearly, a slight silver of anger in his voice. "I did not cheat on you, Clarice was-"

"Oh, so that's her name?" cried Bulma, looking disbelieving. "I don't understand it, Vegeta," she whispered. "I've done everything I ever could for you, took care of when you were hurt, let you stalk around with that arrogant attitude of yours, let you blow up that God-damned gravitron more times than I could count, just to fix it again and again... and this is how you repay me...?"

She shrugged her shoulders, shrugging his hands off of her.

"You know what?" she said, her voice at a dangerously low volume. "I'm not even going to yell anymore." 

Now Vegeta began to panic - it had been much better when she was yelling, but now... he hated the disappointment in her voice.

"I'm not even going to yell anymore," she repeated, looking at the floor. "You know why...?"

She looked Vegeta in the eye, and he saw pain and anger there, a blue storm raging in her eyes. 

"You're not even worth it."

Vegeta's face faltered. _'She couldn't have meant that,' _he thought, panicking even more. _'She couldn't have...' _

"Vegeta, get out."

Bulma raised her arm and pointed towards the door, her hand shaking slightly.

__

"GET OUT."

"But Bulma, I-"

"Get out!!!" she screamed now, her entire body shaking with fury. "I never want to see you again! _EVER!!!"_

He was going to speak again, but stopped, knowing she'd only start screaming at him.

Giving her one last hopeful look, he walked silently but quickly to the front door, wrenched it open, and blasted off into the night sky. 

*Valerie gasps* OMG! Bulma thinks that Vegeta was cheating on her! So what will happen? Will Bulma ever learn the truth about what happened? How will she find out? Will Clarice really be killed? How did the rest of the Z Warriors react? Will they agree with Bulma? And who really ever did buy that pink tube-top?

__

*Valerie has a nervous breakdown* Of course, you all know what's happened, right? I think that the staff of FF.net did the right thing to shut down the site for 24 hours... this is horrible. I still don't believe it. I'm serious.... this is too much like a movie plot or something.... but I'm gonna pray that everything will be okay... !_! But this could seriously be the beginning of World War III.

Luckily my Uncle Reginald (who works about three blocks from the WTC) was sent across the city for a training course, and he's alright...

But my BFF Hanshin (Remember Hershey?) has an Uncle that works at the Pentagon... and we haven't heard from him yet. I hope he's safe. 

Too bad for the Spiderman movie that's supposed to be coming out, eh? The first shot of the movie is these bad guys in a helicopter... and guess where Spiderman catches them? He webs them between the two towers. 

And the song that I put in there (While Veggie was on the deck) was _I Don't Wanna _by Aaliyah... it was kind of a little tribute to her, though it was a sucky tribute.... may she rest in peace. (It was one of my fave songs by her! ::sniff::)

So... on a _much_ lighter side....

I wanna give a huge thanx to Chibi Fire for helping me with the HTML thing. 

I also want to say to Celeste: I like Jericho too! ^_______^

and Nova Starlight, I won't yell at you or anything for your review - you're absolutely right, and I'll try not to do it again. The same thing happened to me - I thought that the story "Breath Away" had a new chapter, but it was just a note ! - So I understand how you feel. 

Well I have a looooooooooot more to say... but I won't bore you.... for now.

P.S. If you guys want me to put up a pic on my profile thingy of what Clarice is kinda supposed to look like, please review!!!!

Please...? 


	8. Chapter Six: Mixed Emotions

Chapter Six: Mixed Emotions

Nazomi stood back, staring out of the doorway as Vegeta's ki trail glared brightly in the night sky, slowly fading as he flew away. 

She stood there for a moment, then turned to look at Bulma, who was standing in the middle of the room, still breathing heavily. 

Without warning, Bulma fell to her knees, sobbing violently.

Chi-Chi and Videl rushed to her sides, trying to comfort her as Bra stood in shock, not wanting to believe what she'd seen, as did most of the remaining people in the room. 

"No... I need to be alone for a minute," said Bulma, shrugging them off and walking into the kitchen. 

Nazomi glanced back at the door one last time before slowly walking into the kitchen, motioning for everyone else to stay back. She sat across from Bulma at the table, gently resting her hand on Bulma's forearm. 

"Are you alright?" she whispered, her orange eyes full of concern. 

"No... but I _will_ be," said Bulma defiantly, glaring through her tears. 

*A/N: You know what...? You were right, V.J... that panic attack really _would've_ been more Chi-Chi's forte... _Valerie scratches the back of her head and frowns_ Well, what's done is done, next time I'll try to keep it more to her personality...*

"Well... Bulma, you really didn't give him much of a chance to explain," said Nazomi quietly, an apologetic look on her face. 

Bulma suddenly looked horrified.

"Explain _what_, exactly?" cried Bulma, looking appalled. "He cheated on me! There's nothing _to_ explain! He's just a bastard son of a bitch..."

Pain began to fill Bulma's eyes, the last few words of her sentence coming out in whispers. She buried her face in her hands and began weeping again, and Nazomi rubbed her arm gently, full of sympathy for her. 

"Well... if you noticed, he _did_ call you _Bulma_," said Nazomi, biting her lip. "I can't even remember the last time he's said your name. Usually he just calls you 'woman'." 

"He was probably trying to sound innocent," said Bulma, sniffing and wiping her eyes. 

"Well... Vegeta may not be the most innocent guy in the world, but I really don't think that he'd do anything like this to you on purpose."

"Really? Why is that?" asked Bulma sarcastically, massaging her temples and trying to control her tears. 

"Because he knows that Goku would go after him for hurting one of his best friends like that, along with the rest of us."

Bulma stared at Nazomi for a moment, then gave a small laugh.

"Huh? Are you _smiling_?" asked Nazomi, peering a Bulma and grinning.

Bulma laughed again, and nodded slowly.

"See? You don't believe that he's guilty, either," said Nazomi, leaning back in her chair.

"Well... I still don't completely think that he wasn't cheating on me, but until I know the truth (if there even _is_ a truth) I can't think of another explanation for him kissing another woman and then smiling about it."

Nazomi nodded in agreement, but still frowned.

"Well... I still think that there's another side to this story," said Nazomi, getting up, "and I'm going to find out what it is."

Bulma looked up at her, confused.

"I'm going after him."

Bulma sighed and closed her eyes, a few more tears escaping them, but said nothing to stop her. 

Nazomi gave her a sympathetic smile before blasting off, still inside of the house, and out the still open front door. 

~-^-~*~-^-~*

Vegeta flew as fast as he could, letting the air whip around him.

His vision suddenly began to cloud with tears, but he knew that it wasn't the vicious thrashing of the on-coming air stinging his eyes that caused them. It was Bulma. 

__

'Why would you ever think that?' he thought sadly, more tears welling up in his eyes. He blinked them back furiously, and landed.

Looking around, he discovered that he was in the city park, small white tables and benches placed beside a white, iron gate, facing the ocean. The surface of the water looked like black, liquid mercury as the lights from the city across the harbor shone on it, the reflection on the water rippling and warping the shapes and colors of the buildings.

Breathing deeply, Vegeta sat down on one of the benches and buried his hands in his hair, staring at the gray cobblestone sidewalk beneath him. 

His breathing suddenly turned ragged, his breaths coming in short gasps, and he suddenly broke down, tears streaming from his closed eyes.

__

"You're not even worth it."

The memory of his last few moments with her burned in his mind, causing more tears to escape. 

*Hey, look... I know that it's really OOC of him (out of character) but he just lost Bulma! give him a break!*

__

"Get out!!!" she screamed now, her entire body shaking with fury. "I never want to see you again! EVER!!!"

He whimpered, remembering the look in her eyes, the look that told him that she'd meant it. 

He suddenly smiled sadly, knowing that if Bulma never found out the truth of what happened, he really _wouldn't_ ever see her again. He knew this because he'd found out, as soon as he'd met her, that she was one of the most stubborn women he'd ever met - one of the qualities that had attracted him to her in the first place. She was just like him. 

If anyone had ever told him before he'd left Frieza's main base, he thought sadly, that forty years after landing on earth he'd be completely at the mercy of some blue-haired human woman, crying and whimpering like a child who'd gotten cut, just because she wouldn't take him back, he probably would have laughed in their face - then kill them for thinking that he'd ever become so weak. 

He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and stood up, walking around the small tables, his hands in his pockets. 

Suddenly Vegeta raised one arm, screaming, and swung it down through the table, breaking it to pieces. He turned and did the same to the row of tables behind him, occasionally letting a small ki blast loose and destroying everything in sight.. 

He suddenly froze and looked over what he'd done. Remembering where he was, he sucked his teeth and walked over to a nearby tree and leaned his back against it.

He tried to keep his mind on what he was going to do next. 

He didn't know anyone else on the planet except for the rest of the Z Warriors, and they all were probably furious with him, all of them believing that he _was_ cheating on Bulma.

*A/N: The author of _The Problem With Romance_ (sorry, I forgot what her name was) made a good point the other day - the whole bond thing is just something that was made up by one author and was copied and copied over and over until so many people believed it to be true in the series that it became fact. I was thinking about that for months, actually... I've never heard anyone talk about it in the series, so I thought that it was fake.... hey, the same thing is true with that "Saiyajin Love Bite" thing! I - oh, I'll shut up.*

But he still didn't understand why Bulma would jump to that conclusion - he'd already told her about their bond, and he'd explained again and again, not only to her, but to anyone who'd asked him that when someone was bonded to someone else, they couldn't live without that person, and that they would never love anyone else.

__

Do you realize

I can't sleep without you

Think without you

Eat without you

Speak without you

Be without you 

I can't even breathe without you 

I can't feel without you

Deal without you

Spend without you

My whole world is upside down

Don't wanna go out

'Cause I can't ride without you

Feel like I'm gon' die without you

Vegeta sighed. After all that he went through, trying to figure out what he wanted more, she'd accused him of cheating on her and kicked him out of the house...

Vegeta, with an almighty war cry, suddenly turned toward the tree he'd been leaning on and punched it as hard as he could. 

He hissed with pain as his knuckles began bleeding, cut against the tree bark. At first, nothing happened. Then, slowly, the tree fell over, making a strange moaning noise as the roots cracked and were pulled out of the ground. 

He looked down at his bloody hand, then realized what was happening. 

Whenever a saiyajin lost someone that they were bonded to, they began to lose their strength. Their energy would be slowly drawn out, causing them to become weaker and weaker... for some saiyajins, they would become weaker mentally, slowly going insane, or others would become weaker spiritually - gradually losing their will to live. Whichever way, they would die without their mate. For Vegeta, he was slowly becoming weaker physically. 

Cursing, Vegeta walked back over to the bench and sat down, burying his hands in his stiff, unruly hair once again.

"Well damn, what happened here?"

Vegeta looked up, startled, to see Nazomi standing near on of the few untouched tables and looking over the area, which was covered in pieces of the wooden furniture. 

Scowling, though he wasn't angry, Vegeta looked back down at the pavement. 

Nazomi looked down at him sympathetically and then walked over to the bench, standing next to him.

"Is this seat taken?" she asked teasingly, her voice quiet.

"No... but I must warn you that I've been having some violent impulses recently," said Vegeta quietly.

"Well _obviously_," said Nazomi, having just spotted the fallen tree. "But I'll take my chances." She sat down next to him, folding her arms and powering up slightly to keep herself warm. 

"Alright, Bulma's not hear to scream your head off. What _really_ happened?"

Vegeta looked up, surprised. 

"You mean you don't think that I cheated on her?"

Nazomi shook her head, smiling. 

"That would be taking too much of a risk. You'd have the entire Z Militia on your ass. They're all friends with her... except for my dad," she said suddenly. "But he'd still go along just for the fun of beating you up." 

Vegets gave a small smile and put the palms of his hands together, tapping the tips of his index fingers against each other.

Sighing, he began.

"...Remember... a couple of week as ago? When that ki appeared?" he said quietly.

"Mm-hmm."

"That ki... I said I didn't know who it belonged to, but I knew _exactly_ who it belonged to," he said softly. "Her name is Clarice-"

"The one you mentioned to Bulma back at CC?"

"Yeah... she's a really good friend of mine-"

__

"How good?" asked Nazomi suddenly, an intrigued look on her face.

Vegeta stared at her for a moment, then scowled at her and turned away.

"That's none of your business."

"Aw, c'mon! Tell me!" she cried. "I'm the only one that believes you, so you at least owe it to me to tell me everything... You said that you never had any friends back then, so what was she? I won't tell anyone else, I _swear_. I'll even _pinky_ swear, damn it."

Vegeta sat, not saying a word. 

"Fine. If you won't tell me," said Nazomi persistently, "I'll guess. Was she really just your friend?"

Vegtea sighed through his nose, closed his eyes, and shook his head slowly. 

"Um... _best_ friend?"

He shook his head. 

"Girlfriend?"

He suddenly looked as tough he were getting annoyed, but shook his head. 

"What, then?"

At first, he didn't move, but he turned to Nazomi and raised his eyebrow.

"You mean - _whoa,_" said Nazomi, laughing. 

Vegeta suddenly glared. "Do you want to know the truth or not?"

"Oh, um.. sure."

Sucking his teeth, Vegeta got back to his story, just needing to tell someone what was going on. 

"Well.... Clarice and I got separated when we were sent on separate missions in different galaxies. After Vejitasei was destroyed, we lost all contact with each other. She eventually heard about what happened, got the Dragon Balls together, and wished the planet back. And now... my father sent her after me to bring me back. So..."

He sighed again, massaging his forehead with his hands.

"She found out about Bulma, Trunks, and Bra," he said, leaning back in the chair now and looking down at his palms. "And... I didn't want to go back, but she couldn't just give the mission up completely, so she gave me two weeks to think about it and decided whether I wanted to go back to Vejitasei or not. And I... I decided to stay here."

Vegeta again leaned forward and buried his hands in his hair, his elbows propped on his knees. 

Nazomi sat back in shock, too taken back to speak. He was mister _"I'm the Prince of the Saiyans!". _

"...Man, you're gonna make me start hittin' you with tables and stuff." said Nazomi suddenly. 

Vegeta looked up suddenly, looking horrified.

"_What?"_

"You made me wanna cry. That is too sweet, man."

Sighing, Vegeta crossed his arms and propped his elbows on his knees, staring at the ground. 

"What am I going to do...?" he whispered to himself. 

"Well... I guess I could talk to her," said Nazomi. "I'll tell her what happened... "

"And if she doesn't believe you?"

"......We'll think of something," she said quietly before standing up and squeezing his shoulder. "Look... Quite frankly, I don't think that she's in the mood to believe anything right now. I'll talk to her sometime this week. And I know you would probably like staying out in the wilderness more, but if you need anything,, you can stay at our place.... I'm sure my mom wouldn't have _too_ much of a problem with it if I explained to her what happened. And my dad needs someone decent to spar with... he's still training me, and I wouldn't stand a chance against him in a real battle." 

Vegeta nodded slowly, but didn't say a waord. 

Squeezing his shoulder again, Nazomi powered up slightly and levitated for a moment before taking off into the sky. 

~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~

__

A/N: I know that a lot of people don't read the song parts and just skip right over them, but PLEASE read this one! This song matches Bulma and Vegeta so well...and not even for the fic itself, in general! You could use this song for anything that has to do with them... so read it and tell me what you think! ^_^* 

Bulma wiped her eyes for the umpteenth time that night. She'd looked the door to her office and sat in the large, brown leather chair, weeping. She'd been lying when she told Nazomi she'd be fine. 

She wasn't about to deny it, she loved Vegeta... and there was nothing that could get rid of that love, unfortunately, she thought to her self. 

__

But sometimes he just pisses me off so much! she thought, then suddenly smiled sadly at a few memories of their worst fights.... their fights weren't really all _that _bad, they never really had any base to them... neither of them were always too mad about it, but made a big deal anyway. It was a common game they always played with each other. But then, there were times where they would get _really _angry and not speak to each other for days... but the make-up sessions were always nice, she thought with a smile. 

__

No matter what you do you drive me crazy

I'd rather be alone

But then I know my life would be so empty

As soon as you were gone

I'd like to run away from you

But if I were to leave you I would die

I'd like to break the chains you put around me

And yet I'll never try

She sighed. What was she going to do? Life would never be the same without him... and what hurt most was that wanted him back. She hated him for making her go through this type of pain... but she loved him with all of her heart and soul. 

Impossible to live with you

But I could never live without you

For whatever you do / For whatever you do

I never, never, never

Want to be in love with anyone but you

You make me sad

You make me strong

You make me mad

You make me long for you

Wait. Was it _because _ of the fights that he had cheated on her? Was it because he couldn't stand it anymore and needed someone else...?

Choking back her tears, Bulma got up and walked over to the large windows and looked out over the city, noticing her reflection in the clear glass. Uncrossing her arms, Bulma reached out slowly, then let her press against it's double. 

Slowly, she let the tips of her fingers move along the reflection to her face, then let her nails scuff across her visage. 

"Damn you, Vegeta," she said, tears streaming freely down her face now. 

__

I hate you

Then I love you

Then I love you

Then I hate you

Then I love you more / I love you more

For whatever you do / For whatever you do

I never, never, never

Want to be in love with anyone but you

I never, never, never

I never, never, never

I never, never, never

Want to be in love with anyone but you

But you

So that's the end of Chapter six! I'm sorry, I know it was pretty short... but I'll try to make the next chapter longer to make up for it. 

In case you like the song, it's called _I Love You Then I Hate You_ by Celine Dion and some opera dude, I'm sorry, I don't know his name. Alls I know is I like the song a lot... and that ain't not bad. ^_^ (Quote: Bart Simpson)

So what's gonna happen? Will Bulma and Vegeta ever get back together? How? What'll happen to Clarice? How does everyone else feel about the situation? Will Clarice find out about what happened between Bulma and Vegeta? Find out on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z: The Legends of Chaos!


	9. Chapter Seven: Unforgiven

Chapter Seven: Unforgiven 

A/N: Hey! First off, I wanna say thanx to everyone that reviewed, it's really motivating... especially my girl Amythyst! ^_^ And I'm gonna leave a few notes here for people... you know who you are.

**ATTENTION: THESE NOTES ARE TO SOME PEOPLE THAT REVIEWED. IF YOU LEFT AN "IMFORMATIVE" REVIEW, PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING... THANX! ^_^**

**V.J:** Hey, dude! I wanna say thanks for all of the support u've given me for the story... but about your reviews - if you've noticed, the author thingy says "Valerie G. 2" on it, when the old one used to say just plain "Valerie G." This is b*cuz my FF.net stuff got screwed, and I wanted to re-upload the story so that people could read it... i know that no one is supposed to upload _any_ story twice for _any_ reason, but hey, I e-mailed the FF.net staff not once, not twice, but thrice - and hey, they're the ones that ignored _me,_ so what was I supposed to do? Your other reviews are still on the old story... u can still see them if u'd like. 

**Adli** Hey, wassup? I wanna say thanx for giving the name of the opera dude (^_^) to me. I'm sorry to any Pavarotti fans I may have offended. But now, I'm one fact smarter! ^_^

**:-) **Hey, you! ^_^  You didn't leave an e-mail address, just the smily face, so that's forever your name now. ^_^ But I wanted to say that you were _completely_ right about the author notes breaking the flow off the story... and i'll try not to put so many in there unless it's absolutely necessary for you to know something that i can't mention directly in the story. That was a _really_ great review... and thanks for saying that the story line was original! I've never heard that b4. And sorry for over-emphasizing the story so far... upon mentioning it, i read it over and realized that i did. A _lot_. Thanx for pointing it out to me! ^_^  But... by the by.... the first few lines of this story don't count! ^_^;;;;;;;;;;

Now, onto the story!

WARNING: This chapter has a whole lotta Bulma! ^_^

"Lemme get this straight, he decided to stay here?"

"Yep."

"He wouldn't rather come back home with us?"

"Nope."

"He's _that_ attached to them?"

"Yep."

"And you're just going to stand back and-"

"Yep."

"But you _could _ just dra-"

"No."

"But you'll b-"

"No."

"It's not a good chance that His Majesty'll forgive thi-"

"I don't care. He doesn't forgive most things, really."

"You're mental."

"Maybe. I _have_ taken quite a few blows to the head...."

Dryphus scowled and slumped back into the cold, metal chair, crossing her arms and legs simultaneously. She'd been sitting there for the last hour, trying to convince Clarice to change her mind about the entire "Vegeta" situation, but Clarice had rejected the idea completely. 

"I really don't understand why you got so damn submissive all of the sudden. You even opposed the King's idea of purging Triggany, yet you accept that idiot's plan to stay on this dirt clod-"

"This planet isn't a dirt clod. A bit corrupt, yes, but not a dirt clod. And besides, Triggany was a beautiful planet, it didn't deserve to be purged."

"Yeah, Triggany was nice... and so was Serctro," said Dryphus, her eyes half-lidded and a strange grin appearing on her face as she reminisced about the Triggany native whom she'd had a wild sexual escapade with. "I think I'm going to give him a visit before we get home...."

Clarice shook her head and was about to start the ship's ignition when Dryphus grabbed her wrist.

She looked at Dryphus to see that she had a pleading look on her face.

"What is it?" 

"Can we go shopping one more time? Please?" 

"Dryphus, we barely have the time-"

"Please?"

"_No_, we have to get back-"

_"PLEASE???"_

Clarice stared at Dryphus for a moment, a look of horror on her face.

"You've gone mad."

"No, I haven't," said Dryphus, looking slightly hurt. "But you _know_ that there aren't that many malls on Vejitasei, and the few we have are only because I talked my daddy into having them built-"

"Dry, I hardly think that we have time to fool around! You've already kept me here over a week more than I planned, and you _know_ that General Bealtue is going to ask why I've stayed so long on one planet-"

"Please? There are malls all over the place on this planet. And I can tell that you _do_ like to go shopping to, you seemed to like the other outfit I bought you. And besides, what the hell can _that_ old man do? he's an idiot."

Clarice frowned slightly, thinking. They didn't have time to play... but ever since she was young, she'd taken a liking to human clothing.

"Well, I will admit, it _is_ a nice change, but-"

"Then let's go!" cried Dryphus, tightening  her grip on Clarice's wrist and dragging her off of the ship, Clarice struggling half-heartedly behind her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Bulma yawned as she slowed the car to a stop, the street light going from yellow to red. It was a week after the "incident", and now she understood why Trunks couldn't wake up in the morning. She hadn't gotten much sleep the night before (she'd spent most of it crying) and now she felt as if she go out cold.

Yawning again, she looked at her watch to check the time.

9:47 a.m.

_Who cares if I'm late? _ she thought, driving forward as the light turned it's bright, lime-green color. _I don't work there anymore anyway. I'm only helping out._

It was slightly true - she _was_ going to help Trunks with his work, since he was slightly behind on it ("slightly behind" by Bulma's standards being only two months ahead of schedule), but her true purpose was to keep her mind off of... _him._

Turning into the executive parking lot, Bulma yawned again, turning off the ignition and stepping out onto the pavement.

Grabbing her deep blue, leather brief-case, she re-encapsulated the car and walked briskly to the glass doors, their gold colored borders gleaming in the morning sunlight. The red-and-black uniformed doormen grinned at her, pulling the doors open and stepping aside to let her in.

She smiled back at them, hoping that none of the sadness she was feeling showed. 

Reaching the elevator, she jabbed the  "up" button, waiting for it with some type of unknown impatience.

It (finally, in her opinion) reached the ground floor, a small beeping sound emitting as the gold-plated doors slid open.

Stepping inside, she tapped her foot hurriedly, suddenly becoming more impatient. No... she wasn't impatient because the elevator was moving slowly (in actuality, it was very fast), but... she suddenly wished that it was the end of the day. She had a strange feeling of anticipation for the evening to come.... but why?

_'_Biting her lip in confusion,  she stepped off of the elevator as the doors slid open once again.

_'Maybe I'm getting lazy and just don't wanna work,' _she thought bemusedly, smiling.

She walked into her temporary office (which was next to Trunks') and set her briefcase down on her desk. She opened it, taking out a few folders, though her mind really wasn't on what she was doing. 

She turned and looked out the large, glass wall, which served as a window that looked out on the large city. 

Sighing, she walked over to the window, and slowly, almost hesitantly, she placed her hand against the window. She slowly leaned into it, and let her forehead press against the cold surface. She sighed, causing  a large cloud of steam to coat the glass.

She smiled as she saw a cute, and ostensibly happy couple sitting at an outdoor table at the cafe across the street from Capsule Corps.' main building, feeding each other ice cream.  

She sighed again and closed her eyes,  sleepiness over-taking her again. She yawned and let her body relax, her muscles loosening, the sounds of the city street below her lulling her....

~*~*~*~DREAM SEQUENCE~*~*~*~

_"You're wrong, Bulma."_

"Huh?"

_"You're making a huge mistake."_

"Who's there? What're you talking about?"

_"It's my fault. I'm sorry."_

Bulma looked around, confused. She was still in her office, but it was nighttime, the city lights shining and twinkling below.

She was sitting against the window, her cheek and forehead pressed against it.

_'I must've fallen asleep,' _ she thought, standing up. But who's voice was that? It sounded like a woman's...  she had an accent, but Bulma couldn't register which one she'd heard.

_"You're wrong," _echoed the voice again. _"Don't blame him. It's not his fault. It's mine."_

"Who?" cried Bulma, becoming frustrated. "What am I wrong about?"

_"He needs you back, Bulma."_

Bulma sucked her teeth, becoming frustrated. "This is just another dream, isn't it?" she cried, a scowl covering her lips.

Her question was almost immediately answered; the office melted away, leaving her in a world of blackness.

She turned, looking around, fear slowly beginning to crawl through her. 

She suddenly gasped, but clenched her teeth as anger  shot through her like a bolt of lightning; there she was. The woman from her dream, the one who'd kissed Vegeta. But confusion began to overtake her anger as she watched the woman - she looked saddened by something, her expression one of guilt. 

_"It's my fault," _she whispered, a pleading look in her eyes. _"He needs you back."_

The woman suddenly shoved her hand into her pocket and took out a capsule, holding it out in front of her. She pressed the small button at the top, and the next thing Bulma heard was a loud _"POOF!"_, smoke spreading around the never-ending blackness. 

After a moment, the smoke faded, and Bulma gasped, though she wasn't exactly sure what she was looking at; all she was sure was that the woman was now holding something large and purple, about the size of a basketball or a beach-ball, and it was emitting a strange glow, about the same purple color. 

The woman held the object out to her, as though offering it to her...

~*~*~*~END DREAM SEQUENCE~*~*~*~

Bulma awoke with a gasp, her heart pounding wildly. 

She blinked and looked around, but sighed with relief as she realized that she was still in her office, though now she was lying on the green leather couch adjacent to her desk, a small blanket over her. 

Slowly lifting herself off of the couch, she stretched, then looked at her watch. 

_12:56_

_'Oh Kami,'_, she thought, disbelief flowing through her. That dream seemed like less than five minutes, how could she have been asleep for three hours?

Frowning in confusion, she walked over to her desk and sat down, burying her face in her hands. 

_"Get a grip," _ she commanded herself aloud, sighing with frustration. 

"You'd better get a grip on those papers, or they'll fall off your desk," said an amused voice from across the room.

Bulma looked up to see Trunks standing at the door of the office, his hands in his pockets. 

She looked at the corners of the desk, where a large pile of folders was sitting, hanging dangerously over the edge.

Suddenly they slid off of the edge, and Bulma made a grab for them, but Trunks'd already made it across the room and aughtthe apaers before they had a chance to hit the floor. He smiled and handed them to her, though the smile faded only after a few moments. 

"So you finally woke up, huh?" he said, a small amount of amusement lingering in his voice. "I found you asleep against the window and put you on the couch over there."

"Thanks," she said quietly before yawning, her hand over her mouth. "Was I really asleep for three hours?"

"Yeah," said Trunks, sitting on the couch. "Maybe you should go home... if you don't  get some rest, I think you'll be out cold by this afternoon."

"No, I'm okay," she said, getting up and walking over to a filing cabinet. "I.... I just need to..."

"Get a grip," finished Trunks.

"Yeah, exactly," said Bulma, unlocking the cabinet and sorting the folders. "So what's wrong with you? You look really awful."

_'Look who's talking,' _thought Trunks, a scowl appearing on his face, masking his grief. _'You've looked depressed since Dad left...'_

"I have a meeting in a few minutes," he replied aloud this time, leaning back in to couch. 

"Oh? With who?" asked Bulma, turning to him, looking confused. "I didn't hear about any meeting."

"Helga Kramer," sighed Trunks, looking almost afraid. "She's the Director of Operations at the Capsule Corps. Branch in Bulgaria."

"Really? What does she want to talk to you about?" asked Bulma, rummaging through another draw, looking for a paper clip.  

Trunks sighed and closed his eyes, one hand massaging his temples. "I decided to put a quota on the shipment of Capsules to Bulgaria because sales were dropping and she's upset by it, apparently."

"Well if sales were going down, _shouldn't_ you have put a quota on it?" asked Bulma, looking confused.

"Exactly," sighed Trunks, standing and walking slowly towards the door. "But I guess that she doesn't think they've gone down enough... she's gonna be here any minute," he said, looking tired. "I'll see ya later, okay?"

"Sure," smiled Bulma, gasping as she found an entire box of paper clips.

Trunks shook his head and walked out, closing the door gently behind him.

*

Trunks walked back into his office, nodding to his secretary in greeting as she smiled at him. He was beginning to understand where he'd gotten his stubbornness from - Bulma'd displayed nothing _but_ her stubborn personality whenever he, Bra, or anyone else had tried to convince her to reconsider the angry verdict she'd made a week before, but she'd done nothing except rebuff the suggestion.

But he knew what was going on - Nazomi'd given him a call the night before, and though he found her story quite unbelievable in the beginning, he was willing to accept _anything _else to be true rather than the hideous tale of his father's unfaithfulness. 

He finally reached his desk and plopped down in his chair rather heavily, causing the chair to roll backward several feet before stopping.  

Laughing softly through his nose, he moved the chair back up to the desk and  put his feet up on the shiny, redwood surface, putting his hands behind his head. 

He closed his eyes and slowly began to drift off, becoming less and less aware of his surroundings.

_'Might as well get a nap in before she gets here,' _ thought Trunks with a small smile. 

But his moment of peace was short-lived as his secretary's voice shattered his sleep state, informing his that Helga Kramer had arrived. 

"Send her in," sighed Trunks, pressing the intercom button and sliding his feet off of the desk. 

A few moments later,  a large, roundish woman walked in wearing a black business suit, the black skirt stopping just below her knees, walked in. Her hair was in an elegant bun, and her thick neck was surrounded in large, shining pearls. Her wrists were surrounded in gold bracelets, her fingers adorned with opal rings; and completing her outfit was a simple, yet beautiful pair of gold earrings with large, black pearls in the middle.

"Ah, hello, Mister Briefs," said the woman, a grim frown on her face as she walked over to his desk, her black high-heeled shoes clicking across the hard-wood floor. 

When she reached the desk, she held out her hand stiffly, an expectant look on her face.

"How haff you been?" she asked, in her low, booming voice as Trunks shook her hand.

"I've been better," he said truthfully, smiling politely. 

"Ve need to talk," she said curtly, letting go of his hand and putting her hands behind her back.

Trunks nodded. "I understand," he said, sitting down and  motioning for her to be seated in the chair before his desk.

_'Oi,'_ thought Trunks, sighing silently. _'This is going to be a long day...'_

*

Piccolo dodged Vegeta's blast easily, turning in time to round-house Vegeta right in the back. 

_'This is too easy,'_ though Piccolo, a smirk on his face as he charged up a ki blast, ignoring the pain in his fractured arm. '_I don't think he's been keeping up on his training...' _

Vegeta spun around, ready to charge up a ki blast, only to see Piccolo crouching with his arms to his right side, a blindingly white ball of light spinning rapidly  between his hands.

Piccolo fired the blast to discover that it was welcomed by thin air - and he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back as Vegeta kicked him to the ground.

Grinning, glad that there was more of a challenge now, Piccolo powered up and kicked his legs upward, causing him to fly back into a standing position.

He turned to face Vegeta, both of them crouched in ready positions.

Neither of them moved; they just waited for the other to start the next bout.

One minutes passed.... two minutes.... they just stood there, staring each other down, trying to intimidate their opponent... and suddenly, they both launched themselves at each other and attacked furiously, as though it would mean life for the victor and death for the loser.

Vegeta attempted to punch Piccolo in the stomach, but in vain; Piccolo teleported behind him and elbowed him viciously in the back of his neck. Vegeta began to fall forward, but caught himself and flipped over in a one-armed cart-wheel, landing on one leg and successfully managing to kick his green adversary in the face with the other leg.       

Piccolo, surprised by the attack, stumbled backward. Breathing heavily, he wiped the thick, black Nemekian blood away from his lip with the back of his hand. 

Without warning, he charged forward and speared Vegeta, his elbow colliding brutally with Vegeta's stomach.

"Beat him, Dad!" 

"No, Dad, you can beat him!"

Both Vegeta and `Piccolo turned to the door of the gravity room to see Nazomi and Bra standing there, cheering them on.

Vegeta, who was especially surprised (he'd expected Bra to have agreed with her mother and be angry at him), suddenly asked, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Mom said it's almost time for dinner," answered Nazomi, smiling. "But Vegeta, if you keep swearing like that, Mom's gonna smack you with her spatula again." 

Piccolo laughed softly at the memory of his enraged wife, who'd hit Vegeta with a large, heavy metal spatula when he'd eaten everything at the table before anyone even had a chance to sit down. 

He got up and walked slowly over to the control panel of the gravity room and turned the gravity down until the pressure in the air was completely back to normal. 

_"Whoa_... You'd better put a splint on your arm or something," said Nazomi, walking a few feet into the room and staring at Piccolo's arm, which looked as if it were hanging, there, numb and useless.. "Or Mom's gonna freak."

Piccolo "hmphed" and walked slowly out the door, holding his elbow in one hand and rotating his wrist. 

Nazomi smiled back at Bra and Vegeta and walked out of the gravity room after her father, humming.

Bra laughed and turned to Vegeta, her hands behind her back. 

"So!" she cried, grinning.

Vegeta stared at her, confused.

"Don't worry, I'm not here to yell at you or anything... Nazomi told me what happened," explained Bra, smiling. 

"She did?" mumbled Vegeta, massaging his aching shoulder.

"Uh huh," said Bra, nodding.  "But... is it true that that lady threatened to kill you but you fought her anyway to stay here?"  

_"What?" _snapped Vegeta, looking horrified. "I never said that."

"That's what Nazomi said," said Bra, shrugging. "She probably wanted to spice up the story or something."

Vegeta, with an angry scowl and got up to go after Nazomi, but Bra caught his arm, laughing hysterically. 

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding," she cried, her face turning red from laughter. "She didn't say it, I made it up..."

_"Very funny," _ spat Vegeta, snatching his arm away from her. 

"Sorry," she said, still laughing as she followed him through the large yard to the house. "Have a sense of humor for once, Dad-"

_"Well I'm sorry if I'm not exactly in a laughing mood,_" snapped Vegeta, scowling.

"I know, I'm sorry," said Bra, her laughter silencing as she spotted a vein throbbing in his forehead.

Still scowling, Vegeta continued walking up to the large estate, Bra walking slowly in his wake; but instead of following Vegeta into the dining room, she changed directions and went up the wide staircase to Nazomi's room. 

Vegeta continued walking and entered the large dining room, the large chandelier that hung from he ceiling shining brightly.

He let himself drop into one of the fancy, wooden chairs, the white cushions on the seat, back, and arm rests abating beneath him.

Mercy sat adjacent to him, chewing slowly, her gaze scaling the prisms in the chandelier. Piccolo sat across from her, his eyes half-lidded. He let himself sink into the chair, stifling a yawn. He still didn't eat much, but Mercy'd convinced him to at least eat light foods, and he occasionally ate things like salad or tofu.

One of the butlers, a white napkin folded over his left forearm, placed a large plate of food in front of him, smiling cheerfully. 

_"Monsieur," _he said respectfully. *"Monsieur is French for sir or man. (Pronounced "Mur-see-ur" _really _fast).*He then turned and walked away, the tails of his overcoat flowing behind him.

Vegeta looked over the long table to see that there were many  more platters and dishes than there were the last night; obviously they'd learned from their experience with him the night before to add more food to the meal.

Vegeta jabbed at the large steak in his plate with the fork and tore a large chunk out of it with his sharp teeth, obviously still angry. He chewed slowly, thinking.

"You could 'ave cleaned yourself up before you came ze table," commented Mercy, staring at Vegeta, a slight grimace on her face.

"Maybe if the food was better, I'd bother to clean up for it," replied Vegeta sarcastically, though he knew that her statement  had plenty of merit to it - he was still sweaty and bloody from his spar with Piccolo, his clothes torn. Piccolo had obviously taken a shower and changed his clothes, because all that was left of the battle was a group of bruises on his arm and a few cuts here and there - and instead of his purple and blue gi, he was wearing a white T-shirt and black jeans.

And Vegeta would never admit it, but the food actually _was_ quite good.

"I am not forcing you to eat it," said Mercy, putting down her own fork, her expression becoming slightly annoyed. 

"Well maybe I-" 

_"Ahem," _ said a butler loudly, interrupting Vegeta's counter, "Mademoiselle Mercy, you have a phone call. It is Lord Gustave."

Mercy's face suddenly broke out into a large grin, an excited glint in her hazel brown eyes. She excused herself from the table, rushing out of the open double-doors.

Glad that she was finally gone, Vegeta began shoveling food into his mouth (she would've screamed at him about his manners if he'd done it in front of her).

Still chewing, his mind wandered to his home... Vejitasei. What was going on over there? Was it any different from it's previous existence?

He "hmphed", shaking it from his thoughts. It was gone now... it wasn't part of his life anymore. 

_'Forget about it,' _he thought.

"What's on your mind?"

Vegeta looked up to see Piccolo sitting with his hands folded in his lap, his eyes closed and his head bowed downward; he'd been trying to meditate, but had stopped when he'd felt the sudden disturbance in Vegeta's conscience. 

Vegeta "hmphed" again, grimacing. 

"None of your business," he spat, scowling. 

Piccolo smirked knowingly, shaking his head from side to side slowly. He knew _something _big was up... but he wasn't sure _what_.

Scowling even more deeply, Vegeta got up from the table, despite his growling stomach. He walked into the living room and let himself fall onto one of the white couches. He sighed; he couldn't have stayed in the kitchen with Piccolo, or he would've pried and pried into Vegeta's mind until he found the truth... which was something  Vegeta didn't want.

He grabbed the remote of the big-screen T.V., turning it on and going channel surfing.

"But Nazomi, you _have_ to take me to the mall, I wanna see if I can find another one of those tube-tops-"

"I'm sorry, but I promised Lon-Lon I'd go to the meeting with him-"

"It's a _meeting_, Nazomi, you said it yourself, it's gonna be boring-!"

"Which is _why_ he wants me to go with him Bra," sighed Nazomi exasperatedly, throwing on a brown leather trench-coat that reached the backs of her knees. "He needs someone to go with him to keep him company-"

"He can find someone else," whimpered Bra, becoming desperate. "But Trunks and Mom are at work, Pan doesn't like shopping, Marron went to the movies with Uubu and Goten, Krillin, Goku, and Gohan went to a football game, and I'm pretty sure that Dad isn't in the mood to take me anywhere right now-"

_"Damn," _cried Nazomi, a bewildered smile on her face, "You just know _everyone's _schedule, huh?" 

"Well.... I kinda checked with them before I came here..."

"Why do you want me to go so badly, anyway?" asked Nazomi, checking her makeup in a large, oval-shaped mirror that hung on the wall beside her. "Ask my Dad to go, he wouldn't mind it-"

"But I need someone that has a _fashion sense_ to come with me, Nazomi-"

"My Daddy has a fashion sense!" countered Nazomi, looking horrified at Bra's accusation. "Just last week, he bought this really cute 'Sean John' T-shirt-"

Vegeta cleared his throat loudly, glaring at the two of them. 

"Sorry, Daddy," said Bra timidly, looking apologetic.

"Vegeta, you have to take Bra to the mall," said Nazomi suddenly, putting her hair into a loose ponytail. 

"What?!" cried both Bra and Vegeta simultaneously, looking appalled.

"You heard her," said Nazomi, checking her watch. "She needs someone with a fashion sense, and I'm pretty sure you have... well, _some _type of sense. Just make sure whatever your wearing looks good on you."

Vegeta looked down at the polished, hard wood floor, cocking his eyebrow at the faint, barely visible  reflection that looked back up at him. 

He _did_ feel a bit guilty about yelling at Bra before...   

"Ah, it's okay," said Bra, shrugging. "I doubt I'll find another one anyway."

"Yeah, I'm sorry," said Nazomi, patting her shoulder. 

"Hold it."

Bra and Nazomi looked up to see Vegeta standing, a stern look on his face.

"I'll go."

"Oh Yay! Yay! _Yay!"_ cried Nazomi, jumping up and down and clapping her hands together. "See? I _told_ you-"

She cut herself off and stopped jumping when Vegeta glared at her, looking irritated.

"Well... you should go get dressed, then," said Nazomi, smiling. She searched the red purse that hung over her shoulder for her car keys, then curse under her breath.

"Oh, not _again_," she groaned, grimacing as she dumped everything out of her purse onto the glass coffee table, trying to find the mysterious keys.

"What's wrong?" asked Bra, looking confused as Vegeta walked by her, heading for the  wide stairs to get dressed.

"My car keys pulled their disappearing act again," snarled Nazomi, looking more than ever like her father as frustration surged through her.

Bra giggled and plopped down onto the couch beside Nazomi, looking around.    

She let her eyes wander down to her hands, then shifted her gaze as something caught her eye.

It looked like a small, glass model of the earth, a small, silver chain connecting to it where the North Pole would have been. 

Curiosity over powering her, Bra, reached over and pulled the min-Earth out of Nazomi's pocket, Nazomi barely even noticing.

She looked over the key chain and smiled as she noticed a large key that said in small letters, _Jeep_ across it.

"Uh, Nazomi?"

"Not now, Bra-"

"But-"

"Not _now_-"

"I found your keys."

Nazomi turned to look at her, looking confused, then her face broke out into a large smile as Bra handed her the keys.

"Thanks!" cried Nazomi, hugging Bra before standing up and grabbing her purse. "Where'd you find them?"

"They were in your pocket."

Nazomi paused for a moment, then sucked her teeth,  shaking her head and cursing herself quietly. 

"Thanks," sighed Nazomi again, shoving everything back into her purse carelessly. 

Standing up straight, she swung the strap of the purse over her shoulder and was about to say goodbye to   
Bra when she saw Vegeta, standing at the bottom of the staircase.

Nazomi gave a low whistle. "Lookin' _good_," she cried, grinning. 

Bra turned and saw Vegeta standing with an expectant look on his face, donned in a pair of (slightly tight) blue jeans, a dark blue t-shirt and a brown jacket, the sleeves of it rolled up so that they were just below his elbows. 

"You look _good_, man," repeated Nazomi, grinning. "But you know, there's something missing..."

She suddenly began searching through her purse again, then her face broke out into an even bigger grin when she took out a pair of black aviator sunglasses.

"Put these on," she said, handing them to Vegeta.

Looking skeptical (and slightly annoyed), He put the glasses on and looked back up, scowling deeply.

"Wow!" cried Bra. "Dad, you _do _ have a sense of style... but you still have much to learn."

"You know, I have a cowboy hat that would go perfect with that outfit-"

"No," said Vegeta, glaring threateningly.

"Alright, alright.... well look, you guys have a great time, okay? I gotta meek Lonnie for the meeting. See ya later."

"Bye!" shouted Bra as Nazomi walked out the oak front doors, humming.

"Alright! Let's go!" cried Bra, grabbing Vegeta's hand and dragging him toward the door. "If wee don't get there before the mall closes-"

"I get the idea," snapped Vegeta, following her out the door.

Wow.

So that's the end of chapter seven.

Yes, it _did_ suck.

I'm sorry.

I just tried to finish it more quickly so that people wouldn't be mad @ me. 

I'll try to be more efficient in the future.

So, what'll happen in the next chapter? Will Bulma _ever_ find out the truth? How? Will Bra find that tube top she wanted? Who was the "strange blonde girl" that the clerk had mentioned bought it? (Yes, I _did_ say that, it's in an earlier chapter.) Who was the "Lord Gustave" person that wanted to speak to Mercy? What was the purple thing that Clarice was giving to Bulma? (I bet I know who can figure that out... ::cough cough:: AMY! ::cough cough::) 

Why am I asking so many questions that I already know the answer to? ^_^

If you think you can figure out what the purple thing is, or just for the hell of it, please review! ^_^

P.S. To any of my peeps out there, please forgive me if I haven't  e-mailed you, but my computer's screwin' around with me again and the net isn't working. In fact, I'm uploading this chapter from a school computer. Hey, what they don't know can't hurt me. ^_^ But Amythyst, if you're reading this, please send an e-mail to Hanshin and send Komadori-chan MD a shoutout for me. She's an author, so you'll be able to find her e-mail address. 

And to K-chan, I'm _really _sorry for putting your e-address out there like that. ^_^;;;

But I've blabbed on and on enough. I'll shut up. Review!


	10. Chapter Eight: Guilty Soul

Chapter Eight: Guilty Soul

A/N: Hey! Wassup! Hola! Konnichiwa! Aloha! Bonjour! Hi! Greetings! _Salut! _ Hello, and _Yo! _

WARNINGS: Vegeta is really OOC (Out of Character) in the beginning of the chapter, but just act like he's in a really good mood, okay? Okay.

A/N: I just found a _really_ screwed up review for the story by someone named "Kay"… and I just wanna say that I'm not gonna get mad. Not worth it. And if you think that the story sucked so much, why did you even _bother _to review? And no, the element of surprise is my best friend, so Vegeta won't start to like/love Clarice in any way. Actually, kinda like a sister, but nothing more. He actually begins to _hate _her later on… but I won't say anything more. It'll ruin the story for the _smarter_ people reading it. 

"Ah man, I love the city at night," sighed Bra dreamily, staring out the window, a look of awe on her face.

Vegeta slowed the car to a stop as the light turned red, one arm sitting on the frame of the open window, his other forearm resting lazily on the steering wheel.

He turned to look at Bra for a moment, then "hmphed" and drove on as the light changed color.

"You'd better not fall asleep," he growled, "I don't want to have done all of this for no reason..."

Bra laughed and sat up, gazing out at the street ahead of her. 

"Bra..."

She turned to see Vegeta, looking...

_Guilty_? 

"Yeah?"

"When I yelled at you earlier," he continued, scowling with frustration, "...I... I didn't care for it."

_'He didn't care for it...?' _ thought Bra, looking confused. Suddenly she smiled and nodded in understanding. She knew he wasn't very good at saying he was sorry...  he was apologizing.

"It's okay, Dad," she said, petting his arm gently. 

Looking immensely relieved, Vegeta turned the car into the parking lot of the large mall and turned off the ignition, shoving the keys into his pocket.

"Shall we?" he said, a hint of a smile on his usually stern face.

"We shall!" cried Bra, getting out of the car and running around to his side.

Laughing, she hooked her arm around his, skipping toward the large building.

Once inside the building, Bra began babbling ("I want that, I want that, and Ooh, I want that, too! Daddy, that would look _really _good on you-!") and running in and out of every store, grabbing dresses, shoes, accessories, everything she could find - and charging it on her (many) credit cards.

Vegeta groaned and struggled to look at his watch, his wrist and forearm caught beneath an exceptionally  large pile of bags and boxes that Bra had made him carry. 

He finally managed to shift all of the shopping bags onto one arm and looked at his watch, his eyes widening - they'd only been there about half an hour.

"Kami," he groaned, shifting the bags again so that they were sitting with equal weight on each arm, "Bra, if you trained the way you shop, you'd have reached super-saiyajin four already."

Bra laughed and shook her head, looking through a particularly large rack of pink clothes. 

"I don't like training, Daddy. It's gross. You get all sweaty and sticky and bloody and smelly..."

Vegeta sighed, giving up. It was one of his latest attempts to get Bra to train, at least a _little_ bit, but she never seemed to like the idea of it.

"Toe...! _Iyu,_ subote gimka shukai mil...."

Vegeta gasped. Had he just heard what he'd thought he'd heard...? Someone was speaking in Saiyago....?

"Plir... ut - shut up!"

He sighed. He was probably imagining it.

"Daddy? Daddy, are you okay?" 

"Huh...?"

"You look kinda sad about something..."

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure-"

"I said I'm _fine_."

Bra decided to quit while she was ahead; she didn't want to get him into a bad mood again. Deciding to leave the store she was in (she'd never find a pair of shoes to match the dress) she walked out of the store, Vegeta following her half-heartedly.

"Where should we go next...?" thought Bra aloud,  biting her lip and looking around.

"The Food Court," she heard Vegeta's muffled voice say come from behind the large pile of bags.

Laughing, she grabbed his hand and led him to an escalator, taking them down to the first floor.

"Ohhh... wait..." gasped Bra, her eyes fixed on another store. 

"Bra you are _not_ going to another store-"

"_Please_ Daddy, this is the last one-"

Before he could respond, she'd grabbed his hand again and was leading him into another store.

"Bra, what are you-"

"Done!" cried Bra, smiling. "See, it didn't take that long. And besides, you're going shopping next."

_"What?!" _

"It'll be fun," smiled Bra, setting another bag on top of the pile he was already holding.

Suddenly the bags began swaying, threatening to fall over - without warning, three of the uppermost bags fell from his arms, about to crash to the floor, when Bra leaped for them, catching them just before they could touch the ground.

"Nice catch," said Vegeta amusedly, helping her up. "But this is getting ridiculous." 

He set all of the bags on the bench beside them, then a few capsules from his pocket. 

"Oh, good idea," said Bra, smiling. "Maybe we should go shopping together more often-"

"No," said Vegeta abruptly as he finished encapsulating the bags, stuffing them into his pocket alongside the car keys.

"Let's go to the food court then," said Bra, hooking her arm through his and resting her head on his shoulder. 

They began to walk through the crowd to the immense _Eatery__3  (Eatery Cubed) _to get some food, Vegeta's stomach rumbling quietly.

"So what restaurant do you want to go to?" asked Bra, looking around at the many diners. "Maybe we should get pizza..."           

But she immediately frowned; the pizza place was closed.

"Weird," she whispered, her brows furrowed.

"What?" asked Vegeta, who's ears were twitching slightly - he'd heard a familiar voice... but he couldn't identify it. 

"The pizza place is closed," muttered Bra, pouting slightly. 

Vegeta "hmphed" uncaringly, his eyes scanning the food court; but he gasped when he discovered exactly _why_ the pizza place was closed. 

In a corner of the large, circular dining hall, at one of the tables, was a large pile of pizza boxes, towering at least five feet off of the table. 

Beside the table where piles and piles of shopping bags from various stores, and boxes of (what he guessed were probably) shoes. 

His eyes narrowed as he saw a flash of blonde behind the white pizza boxes, his ears twitching again.

"Ir mayo... te kishta..."

"Dad, are you okay?" asked Bra, staring at her father with concern. "What are you looking at...?"

She turned in the direction that Vegeta was looking at, then gave a low whistle.

"Wow... if that's only one or two people, I think they eat more than Goku does," said Bra in an awed and amused voice. 

_'Kakkarott...?' _thought Vegeta, a look of deep concentration on his face. Suddenly realization dawned on him. 

_'Blonde... Kakkarott.... eats a lot... mall...'_

_"Dryphus," _he spat quietly, a look of annoyance on his face. Dryphus... she was saiyajin, she _did_ eat quite a lot, even when she wasn't hungry, she was blonde, and shopping was her obsession. 

"What? Did you just say  'dry fist'?" asked Bra, looking confused. 

"No... um, Bra, go ahead and get some... ice cream or something... I'll be right back." 

"Alright," said Bra, getting some money out of her purse. "What type of ice cream do you... want...?" she stopped talking as she looked around; Vegeta was already gone.

"Ah, well," sighed Bra. "Vanilla-fudge for me, then."

*   

Vegeta pushed and shoved through the crowd, ready to curse Dryphus out; for what reason exactly, he wasn't sure, but the fact that she was even on the planet  just... it just bothered him. Not to mention the fact that she was practically a Saiyajin Hitler; she was disgusted by any race _besides _siayajins, save for a few that she would meet on far-away planets. He just hoped she wasn't planning on doing anything extreme.

He was a few feet away from the table when he saw Clarice sitting beside Dryphus, looking bored. Her chin was resting in her palm and her eyes were half-lidded, barely focusing on anything.

"Ih fiyut aght miet," continued Dryphus through a full mouth of pepperoni pizza, her hands motioning toward a rather attractive man who was sitting a few tables away from them. 

Clarice's eyes finally opened fully and she turned to look at him, her eyes narrowed. 

"Subote," she said simply.

"But he _does_!" cried Dryphus, pouting.

"I didn't say that he didn't," muttered Clarice, her eyelids drooping again.

"Well the real one's gonna be upset," said Dryphus, grabbing another slice of pepperoni pizza and biting it, chewing thoughtfully. "He's probably gonna whine and cry-"

"He will _not_," snapped Clarice, glaring at Dryphus, her chin still in her hand. 

"Well you have to admit that he _does _have a sensitive side," said Dryphus, grimacing as she took another bite of the pizza. "Actually, he's really _too_ sensitive-"

"Yes, he _is_ a _little bit_ sensitive, but he doesn't cry," spat Clarice, clearly becoming annoyed. "I think he's sweet. At least he's not heartless like you."

"You think I'm heartless?" whimpered Dryphus, looking hurt.

"On occasion, yes," sighed Clarice. "But only on occasion."

"Oh, okay," piped up Dryphus, smiling.

Vegeta growled and continued walking through the crowd - he'd spent too much time eavesdropping. 

He arrived at the table, ready to yell until his lungs collapsed, when-

"Big V!!" cried Dryphus, getting up and hugging him. "How _are _you? What's it been, forty years? Geeze, you look _good!"_

She rambled on, Clarice watching in amusement, Dryphus' naturally loud voice catching the attention of a few of the people in the food court.

Vegeta could only stand there, horrified at how much this woman could talk. 

"So anyway," she continued, grabbing his arm and dragging him over to the table, "tell me something: doesn't that guy look like Mason?"

Vegeta looked in the direction of her pointed finger, then shook his head, remembering his original plan. 

"What are you doing here?" he asked loudly, looking back and forth from Clarice to Dryphus, his expression cross.

Suddenly Clarice looked hurt, a pained scowl on her face. 

"I'm sorry that it displeases you so much," she muttered, closing her eyes and setting her cheek against her fist and propping her elbow on the table. "But you'll be glad to know that we'll be leaving tomorrow morning."

Dryphus finally let go of his arm, scowling.

"What'd you have to go and get her all upset for?" she hissed, looking horrified. "Now it's _my _ass she's gonna kick if we start sparring again... _thanks a lot_."

Vegeta sighed and tried to find another way to re-word his question, his left eyebrow quirked slightly.

"...Why are you two still here?" he asked, hooking his thumbs on his pocket. "I thought you would've left when I.. um..."

"I wanted to go shopping," said Dryphus, taking yet another slice of pizza. "I forced Clarice to come with me even though she wanted to go home."

That was another thing about Dryphus; she never felt that she needed to lie about anything she did.

Vegeta nodded, his eyes closing behind the dark lenses of the aviator sunglasses Nazomi'd given him. 

"So what happened to you?" asked Dryphus, picking up her soda and swirling the bottle around slowly. 

"What're you talking about?" snapped Vegeta, looking confused.

"You seemed _really_ upset about a week ago," she explained, leaning back in her chair. "What, did you change your mind or something?"

_"No, _I _didn't_ change my mind," said Vegeta, glaring daggers at Dryphus.

Dryphus shrugged her shoulders and bit into a large slice of everything pizza. "Your loss," she said through a full mouth. "But what happened?"

"...Nothing," he sighed, shoving his hands fully into his pockets now. 

Dryphus snorted, looking incredulous. "I know _something_ happened, and you're going to tell me what it is."

"It's none of your concern," he spat, becoming more and more annoyed by her many queries.

"Well it is now," she said smiling. "You _know _I'm nosy, and if you don't tell me what's up, as soon as we get home, I'm gonna tell 'Daddy Dear' what's going on-"

"You will do _no such thing_," growled Clarice through gritted teeth, looking up at Dryphus and glaring at her. 

"What do _you_ care? You'll probably be _dead_ by that time, you won't be able to stop me."

"I have _plenty_ of time to 'stop' you before we get back," she mumbled. 

"Oh, you'd hurt little old me?" asked Dryphus, smiling sweetly at her. 

Clarice "hmphed" and propped her elbow up on the table, letting her chin rest against her fist. She let her eyes slide shut, but not before aiming a small ki blast at Dryphus in warning. 

Yep. They were best friends, alright.

Dryphus turned back to Vegeta, rocking her soda from side to side slowly. 

"Please?" she begged, using the same sweet smile on him. 

_"Fine,"_ sneered Vegeta, knowing that she'd probably be true to her word about telling his father. 

He sat down in the chair, his head hung for a moment. He sighed and began his account of what happened, becoming angrier as he noticed a delighted glint in Dryphus' eyes. 

But Clarice just sat at the table, not moving; whether she was listening to him or not, he couldn't tell.

"So she hates you," shrugged Dryphus again after taking a sip of soda. "Now you _really_ don't have any reason to stay here, so you can come back with us-"

She suddenly gave a loud yelp dropped her soda, but luckily the cap was on it, or it would've spilled all over Vegeta's lap; she bent down slightly and began rubbing her left shin vigorously, whimpering, and cursing, her lips pouted. 

Vegeta looked back and forth from Clarice to Dryphus, wondering what'd happened; then he gave a small laugh as he realized that Clarice had kicked her.

Clarice's eyes slowly rolled open, then she sat up straight, looking Vegeta directly in the eye.

"Is all of that true?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Vegeta looked taken back at the expression on her face, but found his composure and nodded, gazing down at the floor.

Clarice buried her face in her hands, breathing slowly.

_'How could I have been so stupid?'_ she thought, guilt running through her. _'You knew he was married, why did you have to kiss him...?'_

_'Now you've done it,' _came another voice. _'You've gotta learn to let go! Quit being so emotional!'_

Clarice smiled. She knew that she _did_ have to learn to accept things for what they were, and this incident had proven it. She'd gone too far and destroyed a beautiful relationship.... but she was going to fix it.

Both Vegeta and Dryphus looked surprised as Clarice stood up, a look of determination on her face. 

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Dryphus, an angry look on her face.

Clarice didn't answer to Dryphus, but to Vegeta, who had a questioning look on his face.

"Vegeta," she began, throwing on her jacket, "if she won't believe that you weren't cheating on her, I'll have to convince her myself."

So that's the end of chapter eight! Yet another sucky chapter, I know, I know, but unfortunately, as I mentioned in the chapter previous to this one, my internet isn't working, so I can't e-mail K-chan and get her to help me in writing it out. 

So blame my computer.

Anyway, as you all know, this will later be following the storyline of a very high-quality, first-class game (except for all of those damned horrible camera angles!!), Sonic Adventure, and I made a few decisions on how this will go about:

Most of the levels (Windy Valley, Red Mountain, Speed Highway, etc.) will be Saiyajin training courses. Yes, I _know_ that sounds stupid, but how the hell else am I going to explain how all that stuff got there? I'll have a better explanation somewhere later in the story, and believe me, it won't sound _half  _as bad as it does now.

The soundtrack _will_ be included in the story. It is really a kick-ass soundtrack, and some of the songs _("It Doesn't Matter", "Unknown From M.E.", "Believe In Myself", _etc.) really fit well into different parts of the story. 

Various characters will play a single character from the game. For example, Nazomi, Clarice, Goten,  and Goku all play Sonic's part. ^_^ Yeah, that sounds pretty weird. But it fits. And besides, Sonic has a really big part in the game. _(Well duh, the game is friggin' named after him!) _Both Bulma and Krillin play Tails' part, blah blah blah... but the rest of the characters will be played by a single person. Chi-Chi plays all of Amy's part, Yamucha play's Big's part, and E-102 (Code name: Gamma) will, well, be played by E-102... but as I mentioned before, not as a gunner robot, but as an android. Puar will play Froggy's part, and Oolong will be the Birdie. And Knuckles will be playing Knuckles. No, I will _not_ be having a red echidna in the story, but another made up saiyajin named Knuckles. 

But here's a poll question that needs answering: Should rings be included in the story? They're in the game, and I've already thought up a scenario about how they'll come to be there. So answer it!

So what'll happen in chapter nine? What did Clarice mean when she said that she would have to convince Bulma that Vegeta wasn't cheating on her? Will Bulma and Vegeta get back together? 

Find out on the next episode of -

                                                                _Dragon__Ball__Z__:  __The Legends of Chaos_

If I get ten more reviews, I promise to get the next chapter out before next week! So review! ^_^  (Yes, my latest scheme to get more reviews…)


	11. Chapter Nine: Clarice's Candor

Chapter name explanation: Clarice tells Bulma _everything_. (The word "candor" means honesty.)

A/N: Well.... quite frankly, I'm really disappointed. I expected _a lot _more reviews than I got. Now I'm discouraged to write! _I need some support here!_

Also, to um.... Kay, yeah, that's it - I accept your apology. Your the first person I've known to flame a story and then _apologize_ for it. ^_^ That's really nice of you. But... really, if your only nine years old, I dunno if you should be reading this story. The rating is "R", man. Pay attention. 

And one last note before the chapter begins - my right "Shift" button is broken, so I have to get used to using the left one. So if you find any typos, you'll know what the cause is. 

Chapter Nine: Clarice's Candor

Half an hour later found Clarice skimming the few clouds that streaked an otherwise clear, sable-colored sky-- the guilt of her earlier encounter with Vegeta still burning shamefully in the back of her mind. But then again, guilt was a feeling she was all too familiar with by now. Idly, she glanced down at the city below her, the street lights and cars blurring together in a strange, erotic sort of dance of color as she flew faster, her long hair whipping about her face, as though in an attempt to get her attention. 

She exhaled heavily through her nose-- her arms splayed out at her sides as though to embrace the crisp night air as it carried her along. Ever since she'd first learned to fly (which was _much_ later in her life than most other saiyajins had learned to), she'd felt as if the sky was the only place in the world where she belonged. She was always at peace up there, watching over the many life forms below her, where there was no one to judge her, no one to tell her what to do, no one to tell her how to live...

Whenever she flew, it was as if she had broken the barriers of repression-- freeing her to rise above the monotonous, droning lull, which had become her life. It was relaxing. She could always just sit there for hours and hours, watching the heavens above her and the world below her, her mind either focusing in deep thought, or residing in the bliss of utter ignorance; not a single thought moving in her head, as though her brain were dormant.

But her mind was always working anyway...it was always work, work, work-- no time to play. On rare occasions, the King would let members of his workforce go one vacation, but in some situations "rare" would become almost no more-- extinct. 

So she _did_ deserve a vacation anyway, didn't she?

Sighing again, Clarice remembered the task at hand-- the reason why the guilt pressed had itself upon her.

::What are you _doing?_::

Clarice's face suddenly broke from it's blank, peaceful expression as she frowned, her short moment of bliss being shattered by the sudden telepathic yell. So, he'd finally decided to try and reach her... it was almost surprising, given how long it had taken. But then again, judging from his hesitance to follow her when she'd walked out on him and Dryphus, she was almost certain he wouldn't come after her. 

::I asked you a question! Answer me!::

::Now you _know_ that I don't answer to anyone, Vegeta.::

::What are you going?::

::I'm going to pay Bulma a visit.::

::Nani?:: ::What?::

::If she won't listen to you, she's going to have to listen to me.::

::If you hurt her--::

::I won't touch her. I'm only going to talk to her.:: 

::What? Why?::

::The same reason that I let you stay here. Now shut your mouth and just trust me.::

She sensed that he had more to say, but she'd already shut down her brain again, severing his link to her, the feeling of peace returning to her. Now the only thing she was concentrating on was the gigantic silhouette of the Capsule Corp building a few miles ahead of her... 

__

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bulma leaned back into the large, cushioned chair, wanting to go home, but then again... if she went home, her mother would only try to talk to her about trying to work things out with Vegeta. 

__

'Fat chance,' she thought, her eyes sliding shut. _'The only way ever I'm getting back together with him is if he has damn good explanation for what he did.' _ Somehow, even as the thought came to her, it didn't feel quite right, but she chose to ignore it. She loved him, but there was no way she was going to give in and let him walk all over her like that. If that was how he really felt anyway, then their relationship wasn't worth the paper it was written on.

She sighed and opened her eyes, staring up at the ceiling-- it was the same boring wall with the same boring shadows draping over the same boring spots. Becoming restless, she got up and walked over to the window that she'd fallen asleep against hours and hours before, again staring out at the city. 

Thousands upon thousands of lights met her gaze, twinkling in the dark of the night, like a mirror of the stars above them, stretching from here to eternity and back in striking display.

Luckily, she was alone in the office; Trunks had finished his work (including the stressful meeting with Helga Kramer) and had left early for a date he had with his second girlfriend that week. 

__

'Nazomi was right to call him a man-slut,' thought Bulma, smiling as she recalled the memory.

She jumped slightly as she heard a strange noise behind her, though she wasn't sure where it'd come from. Slightly panicked, she stood rigidly in place for several moments, straining her ears for the phantom sound or some clue to its origin-- but there was nothing.

She was about to dismiss it when she heard it again, this time closer. Whatever it was, it was outside the office, moving towards the door. 

Her heart beat speeding up considerably, she ran over to the door as fast as she could, locking it. She walked back to her desk, opening the drawer that held her beloved firearm, ready to grab it if she needed it. 

This was happening all to often now - ever since she'd had that dream, she was afraid of anyone coming up to her office at night.

__

'Calm down.' she thought to herself. _'Maybe it's Trunks. Maybe he forgot something.' _ But something in the back of her mind knew it wasn't true.

The footsteps finally came to a halt, standing right behind the door of the office. Bulma waited for the person to do something, knock, try to turn the doorknob, do something, but nothing came. For some reason it worse than the person trying to break in... the silence was unnerving.

"Wh-Who is it?" called Bulma, the all too familiar feeling of dread over-taking her. 

"Bulma?" came a muffled voice from behind the door, sounding somewhat uncertain. 

Bulma's face suddenly contorted into one of confusion; she hadn't actually expected the person to answer her, she only wanted to be certain that she would need to be prepared for some type of attack.

The voice was a woman's; was it Trunks' secretary? No, his secretary was from Madrid, she didn't have a British accent. 

"Yes?" she called finally, becoming less attentive.

"I need to talk to you," said the voice, it's owner still hidden behind the door. "It's about Vegeta," she responded, sounding shamefaced.

Bulma's eyes widened, her mouth opening slightly in surprise. 

"H-how do you know about that?" she asked, her fingers tracing over the cold barrel of the gun.

"Probably because I'm the cause of it," replied the voice after a moment of hesitation. 

Bulma's eyes widened even more, and her feeling of dread turned to one of anger. 

__

'So that's the bitch that he kissed,' she thought her teeth barred.

Picking up the gun, she walked over to the door briskly, all fear leaving her, anger clouding every ounce of judgment she had left. She unlocked the door and swung it open, holding the gun in front of her.

A feeling of superiority thundered through her as she observed the horrified look that flashed across the woman's face when she saw the gun. Bulma smirked and let her index finger wrap around the trigger, prepared to pull it.

But when the raven-haired woman regained her composure and leaned against the doorframe, a decidedly bored look settling over her agonizingly beautiful features, Bulma's hand wavered, her earlier confusion coming back into play. For a long moment, the two regarded each other, one in mild annoyance, the other in barely contained fury. _'Just who the hell does she think she is?'_ Bulma thought, teeth clenching in aggravation, _'I've got a gun to her head! Stupid, arrogant... no wonder Vegeta was interested in her--"_

"I wouldn't bother if I were you," she said quietly. 

"Well you're _not_ me," spat Bulma before pulling the trigger.

The sound of the gunshot surprised Bulma, who clenched her eyes shut and clasped her hands over her ears, the short echo causing her head to throb in pain.

She opened her eyes, expecting to see the woman on the floor, dead and bleeding a provocative smear across her floor, but was welcomed merely by the sight of the pale-eyed vixen examining the bullet, which apparently... she'd _caught. _

"Wow," muttered the mysterious woman, looking over the bullet. "Now _this_ one was _meant_ to kill."

Bulma stumbled backward, horrified, still gripping the gun tightly.

Sighing quietly, the woman held the bullet at arms length, staring at the open window ahead of her. Finally finding the right angle, she reeled her arm backward, then swung back forward, releasing the bullet from her hand. The bullet went zooming forward, as though again shot from a gun. It zoomed out the window, making a short swishing sound as it pierced the air. 

Bulma stared out the window in the direction of the botched bullet, horror over-taking her. 

"H-how - b-but - it's impossib - how-" she stammered, horror running through her. 

"Look," began the woman, shoving her hands into the pockets of her jeans, "if you give me a chance, I'll explain _everything_, because Vegeta needs you back. I've never seen him this upset before. If you still think that I'm lying after you hear the truth, you may take as many shots as you want with that gun. I'm not _guaranteeing _that one of them will hit me, however."

Bulma stumbled back to her desk, walking around it and sitting down. Propping her elbows up on the desk's redwood surface, she buried her hands in her hair, staring down at her knees.

She'd seen many things in her life, of course, but now... it'd just been so long since she'd seen anything so unnatural. The only people she knew that could do things like that were the rest of the Z Warriors, and this lady sure as hell wasn't one of them. 

Bulma looked back up at the woman, as though examining her. 

__

'Who could she be?' she though to herself, frowning. _'She looks almost... saiyajin.... but she has to be human. The rest of the saiyajins are gone. They're almost extinct. But how did she get so fast? Is someone training her....?'_

Now she was willing to believe anything. And even if she didn't fully believe her... something about her just seemed sincere.

"Fine," sighed Bulma finally, still frowning. "I'll listen. But I'm not promising that I'll believe anything you'll have to say," she said quietly, her words a haunting reflection of Clarice's earlier proposal. 

The woman's face lit up suddenly with a grateful smile, her steel-colored eyes sparkling. "Thank you," she sighed, still smiling.

"You're name's Clarice," said Bulma suddenly, looking back expectantly up at the woman, her hands still in her hair.

"Yes," said Clarice. "Vegeta must have told you..."

"By accident," muttered Bulma, lazily sitting her chin in her palm.

Nodding, Clarice sighed and stared down at the floor, toeing the edge of the large Oriental rug she was standing in front of.

"Where do you want me to begin?" she asked suddenly, looking back up at Bulma.

"You tell me," said Bulma, becoming slightly annoyed. "You're the one that knows when Vegeta started cheating on me, so start there."

Clarice suddenly laughed and shook her head knowingly, staring Bulma right in the eye. 

"He never cheated on you, I know that for a fact. He loves you too much. And the reason that I asked where you wanted me to begin was because I didn't want to tell you some big, long story about anything that you weren't interested in. I guessed that he'd at least told you about what was going on, and I only need to tell you what you want to know."

"Wait, what 'big, long' story?" asked Bulma, looking confused. "He never told me anything." 

__

'Here we go again,' thought Clarice, standing upright instead of with her back slouched as it was before. 

"Well... I guess I have no choice _but_ to tell you everything," she sighed, closing her eyes. "It happened a few decades ago..."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Alright. Kinda short, but there it is... chapter nine. I hope people liked it, and if you didn't, well then I'm sorry. . 

Read and Review!


	12. Chapter Ten: TeleTherapy

Chapter Ten: Tele-Therapy

Chapter Name explanation: I didn't have any ideas, that's my explanation. ^_^

A/N: Well, I haven't got half as many reviews as I had the first time around when I wrote this fic.... and believe me, I do evil things when I'm forced to. And if no one is reading these chapters and reviewing, then I will be forced to leave you with a _huge_ cliff-hanger. And I won't update for like a month. I'll just leave you wondering, going crazy, asking "Why? How? What happens to so and so....?" 

Watch, I'll do it, too.

Disclaimer: None. I own everything. Go ahead and sue me, it won't hold up in court. Why would it? On like **_every_** DBZ/GT site there is, it says that Akira Toryama is the owner! Who would be stupid enough to think that I could actually own it? 

Besides... if I owned the series, I'd seriously be turning this into a full-length computerized movie (like Final Fantasy or something). Believe me. 

Nazomi yawned as she stretched her arms out, her eyes half lidded. She turned and looked around, not really knowing where she was, until she realized that she was lying, sideways, on the white-leather recliner.

__

'Chair,' she thought lazily. _'I'm on the Lay-Z-Boy..'_

'How the hell did I get here?' 

Yawning again, she sat up slowly, looking around. 

Across from her, on the large, white couch, lay Piccolo and Mercy. Apparently, they were both asleep; Mercy's head rested on the armrest on the right side of the couch, her feet sitting on Piccolo's stomach, and Piccolo was lying on the opposite side of the couch, his head on the left armrest.

Smiling, she turned to the big-screen T.V., which had been on since the previous night (which they'd spent most of watching videos and eating popcorn). Grabbing for the remote, she turned it off, then walked out of the living room, heading for the wide, carpeted stairs.

Yawning yet again, she walked into her room, hissing quietly as the bright sunlight from the open balcony doors blinded her for a moment. 

Sighing, she closed the glass doors and walked back over to her bed, which was adorned elaborately in stuffed animals. 

Picking up her favorite Teddy Bear, a blue one named Sir Snugglekins, she sat on the edge of the bed before falling onto her back and sitting the bear on her chest.

"Isn't life boring?" she asked the bear, it's vacant, shiny black eyes staring back at her blankly. 

"It's not fair," she continued, frowning and turning onto her stomach. She put the bear on the opposite edge of the bed, then rested her chin in her palm, staring into it's blue face.

"Everyone got to go on all of those cool adventures, they got to fight bad guys, they even _changed history_, Snugglekins!" she cried, remembering her father telling her about Mirai Trunks' visit from the future.

"Even Pan got to go on that 'grand tour' thing..." she thought for a moment, then snapped suddenly, "I should hijack a space ship. Then maybe I could go around the galaxy..."

She turned back to the bear and muttered, "Stop whining, I'd take you with me."

The phone on the brown night stand beside her bed began ringing loudly, a small, red light beeping three times to every ring. 

Groaning, she sat up and stared down at the small screen that resided above the number panel. She grinned when she saw the name _Bra Briefs_ light up the screen, a small picture of Bra's smiling face sitting beside it.

Grabbing the headset, Nazomi propped the headphones over her ears and re-positioned the microphone so that it was right over her mouth.

"Chello!" she cried, laughing. "Wassup, Bra! I haven't heard from you in a week! What's going on?"

"Well obviously your caller I.D. is working," laughed Bra. "So do you wanna come over today? I need some company. It's getting kinda boring over here... Everything's really depressing. No one's talking all that much, it's not the same."

"You think things are weird at _your_ house?" cried Nazomi, sounding incredulous. "Ever since your Dad started staying with us, my mom's been acting weird. Sometimes she just snaps and starts yelling at everyone."

  
"Yeah... she probably doesn't like him all that much."

__

"You're telling _me," _muttered Nazomi sarcastically. "That's probably the case anyway... he broke my Dad's nose while they were training. She was absolutely livid."

Bra laughed quietly, then sighed. "So are coming over or not? Pan is training with Gohan, and Marron's not sure if she can make it. She's doing _something _or other, I dunno exactly."

After a moment of thought, Nazomi sighed, "Sure. Why not. I left my CD Player in Trunks' room, anyway."

__

"Trunks' room? What were you doing in there?" asked Bra, sounding confused. 

"Playing video-games," said Nazomi simply. "I really kicked his ass in Tekken. I guess he hasn't had time to brush up on his gaming skills lately."

"Well, he may not be good at video-games, but he's a real player," said Bra suddenly.

Both of them paused for what seemed like hours, neither of them daring to make a sound; then, sounding horrified, Bra cried - 

__

"Oh my _God!!" _

Nazomi exploded with laughter, her eyes clenched shut. 

"Did _I _just make up that corny joke?" whimpered Bra, sounding as if she were going to cry. 

__

"Oui, mademoiselle," laughed Nazomi, immitating her mother. "Looks like you're not the Princess of _insults,_ that's for sure..."

Noticing how quite the line suddenly went, Nazomi ceased her laughter, hoping not to have offended her long-time friend. 

"Hello?" she said into the phone, sounding worried. "Bra, are you still there?" 

__

"Yeah," she muttered, sounding miffed. 

"I'm sorry," apologized Nazomi, truly sounding it. "I was only joking."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Really!" cried Nazomi, attempting to cheer Bra up. "Oh _come on_. Don't be such a drama-queen."

Bra gave a small laugh, but still didn't speak.

"So..... when should I come over?"

"Anytime," sighed Bra. "I'll be home all day... sulking around, like everyone else is."

Nazomi frowned with sympathy, noticing the saddened note in Bra's voice. 

"Your parents are going to get back together soon," said Nazomi in a hopeful tone. "I can feel it."

"Really?" asked Bra, sounding a bit happier.

"No," said Nazomi bluntly. "But Vegeta told me that the Clarice chic went to talk to your mom last night. Maybe she straightened things out. Wait, is your mom home? Maybe you could ask her..."

"No, she's not home yet. She stayed in her office all night. I called her, but she said that she needed to get some work done."

"Hmph... well I'll be over in like an hour. See ya then."

"Bye," sighed Bra, preparing to hang up. "Wait Nazozmi?"

"Huh?" cried Nazomi, sounding surprised; apparently, she was also about to hang up.

"...Thanks," said Bra quietly. "It was really great of you to help out with this whole mess."

Nazomi smiled, holding the headset beside her head.

"No problem," she said into the small microphone. "They're meant to be together. I hat seeing them apart anyway."

"And your mom is going crazy with my dad in the house, right?"

"Right."

Hey... yeah, so I had writer's block for a little while, as many great writers do (no, I'm not implying that _I'm _ a great writer, alls I'm saying is that everyone _does_ get writer's block once in a while) so I decided to end the chapter there and just post it up so you guys didn't have to wait for like a month before I posted up the next chapter. 

But anyway... guess what! This story isn't even half done, no, not even a _third_ done, no, not even a _quarter_ done, no, not even a _fifth_ done, no, not even a _tenth_ done (alright, I'll stop) but I'm already planning the sequel! ^___^ Yes, I know that's stupid, but I already know how this story is going to turn out. So, why not take the next step and just start planning the next part of the adventure? Actually, it's not the next part, seeing as the adventure ends in this story, but _another_ one starts out in the sequel. That kinda sorta has to do with the first one. 

Well... please read and review, or like I warned, I'll leave everyone with a really huge cliff-hanger.

But besides that, the next chapter should be out before mid-January. 

^_^ 

~Valerie G.2-chan 

P.S. Try and say that three times fast! ( ~Valerie G.2-chan )


	13. Chapter Eleven: The Present

Chapter Eleven: The Present

A/N: Hey, y'all. Well, I wanted to get the next few chapters out really quickly... to make up for all the time that I wasted before. I hope y'all can 4give me. 

But anyway... this story... is going to take a lot longer than I thought. I'm not gonna say anything, because people would just get scared and stop reading. ^_^ 

Well anyway... on to the story.

P.S. Hey, VJ!!! ^_^ I knew u wouldn't leave me. U've been a really great reader thru the whole thing, and 4 that, I thank u.

But no, I wasn't cussing out a nine year old! ^_^

She hummed as she washed the dishes, a small, pleasant smile of contentment on her face. 

She'd realized that this had become part of her daily routine; cooking, cleaning, looking after everyone, no matter if they thought they were old enough or mature enough to take care of themselves. She always seemed to be there, helping them through whatever problems they had.

Not that she minded it; most of her family had grown up and she missed taking care of them.

Her smile widened as she watched her ever-lovable husband through the window of the kitchen. His form lay spread out on the grassy ground, his chest rising and falling slowly as he watched the clouds, not to make shapes out of them, but just to relax after an afternoon of sparring; it was one of his more recent hobbies.

She sighed and pulled her attention back to her present task, her humming resuming to it's original song. 

Putting the dish in her hand into the cupboard beside her, she picked up the next dish and began scrubbing it gently, to the same rhythm as the calm tune she was humming. 

Her vision was pulled from the florally decorated china dish as Goku's body suddenly twitched on the grass, as though he were surprised by something. 

She watched him, a frowning as he sat up abruptly, his ears twitching. 

Then, she heard it; the roar of a powerful car engine, speeding through the woods to their house.

"Oh, no," she whispered in a benevolent sort of way, drying her hands on a dish towel and untying her apron. 

****** 

"You _what?_" 

Clarice sank back into the seat of the large car (yet another item that Dryphus had _mysteriously _obtained), staring out the open window, smiling serenely and letting her eyes slide shut as the wind swept over her face.

"Reese! _Reese, _are you even listening to me?" cried Dryphus, throwing annoyed glares toward Clarice, who had slid down so far into her seat that the back of her head rested on the spot where her shoulder had once been.

Giving a loud groan of defeat, Dryphus turned left, toward yet another mall. She'd yet again convinced Clarice to stay ("Just one more day, _pleeeeeeeaaaaaaasssssse???" _) and was going on yet another shopping spree.

"I just don't understand you," continued Dryphus, barely paying attention to the road ahead. "I doubt that you're a pure-breed, either that, or you were dropped pretty hard after you were born and forgot everything." 

Clarice sighed and then smiled, lifting up her left hand and gazing at her ring. 

"I never _got _programming, remember?" said Clarice, letting her hand drop back into her lap. "My father wouldn't allow it."

"Old geezer," muttered Dryphus. "Probably the most stupid move he's ever made, the idiot." 

Clarice's face snapped around to stare at Dryphus in horror.

"Take it back," she snarled. 

__

"Fine," sighed Dryphus exasperatedly, imitating Clarice and sinking back into her chair also as they were caught in a small traffic jam. She slowed the large SUV to a stop as the car in front of them halted completely, a slightly impatient frown cutting into her facial expression as she peered further down the crowded intersection.

Still slightly disbelieving, but not wanting to start an argument, Clarice relaxed onto the chair and returned her gaze to the window, watching amusedly as a small boy, probably no older than six, began shrieking with laughter as a small Golden Retriever puppy licked his face lovingly, it's paws on the young child's shoulders. 

"I'm calling Mason," said Dryphus suddenly, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a device that resembled a hand-held TV. "Then maybe I won't die of boredom." 

Bringing the phone up to her ear, she sighed, "Mason," and it automatically began dialing.

A tiny red light suddenly began flashing, and when she looked down at the screen, it said "Video not available."

Dyphus sucked her teeth. "Piece o' shit," muttered Dryohus, glaring at the phone angrily. "I'm getting the new model as soon as we get home." 

"And we will _never_ get there if you keep going shopping," said Clarice, sitting up.

Ignoring her, Dryphus put the phone to her ear, using her shoulder to hold it in place.

"'Ey! Itsoby turi shte?" cried Dryphus, grinning. "Iu moran?.... Ooohhhh," she sighed suddenly, "guess what... that idiot Prizari broke that Jutrian vase that was in the Main Hall!"

Clarice gasped in horror, her eyes widening. The planet Jutry had been destroyed long ago, and the vase was the last relic of it's existence. 

"That vase was priceless," she whispered, and Dryphus nodded, listening to Mason as he spoke. 

"Jzekleid," whispered Dryphus, smirking. "Mm-hmm. Here. He wants to talk to you," sighed Dryphus, 

Smiling, Clarice took the phone and pressed it to her ear, whispering a quiet "Hello."

"Hey, Claire," murmured Mason, and she could tell he was smiling through his voice. "I miss you guys."

"I miss you, too."

"...Dryphus... she told me about your decision," he said, his voice turning serious. "Is she telling the truth...?"

"......." Clarice sighed, frowning, but didn't say anything.

"...I'm guessing she was, then," he sighed, sounding genuinely upset. "But why?"

Clarice sighed and closed her eyes. "If you don't mind, I'd rather talk about something a bit less... depressing."

Mason gave a quiet laugh. "I'm sorry," he murmured, his deep, suave voice rumbling. "But you can't blame me for objecting it."

Clarice smiled, her heart swelling.

"How is everything up there?" she asked quietly, twirling a strand of hair around her index finger.

Mason heaved a sigh. "Well, it's taken about six people to replace you at work. Avram and the others seem to be bored without you there to boss them around all the time-" they both laughed softly - "and not to mention, it just isn't the same without you here."

"Awwwww," said Dryphus in mock syrupiness, having overheard the comment.

Clarice slapped her on the arm playfully before returning to she and Mason's conversation. 

Mason, who'd heard Dryphus' comment, said, "Tell Dree-Dree that Greg found someone else."

Grinning, Clarice turned to Dryphus. 

"Mason says that Greg is with someone else now," she said, pursing her lips.

"What?" shrieked Dryphus, staring at Clarice. She suddenly grabbed the phone from Clarice and began speaking directly to Mason.

"Who is it...? Lina....!! That _skank?!"_ she roared in disbelief. "Why would he date _her?"_

Not waiting for an answer, she tossed the phone angrily into Clarice's lap, who was torn between amusement and sympathy for her friend. 

"Alright, Mason... I need you to do me a favor," she sighed, her smile faltering. 

"Anything," he murmured.

Dryphus frowned as Clarice's voice dropped dramatically, as though she were telling Mason a secret. 

"You'd better not be talking about me!" she cried warningly, slapping Clarice on the arm and throwing angry glances in her direction.

"Are you sure you don't mind that?" asked Mason after Clarice had explained the favor to him, sounding disbelieving of her decision. "I mean it took you years to find that one..." 

"I know... but he drove me to find it."

"So you want it to be a relic of the worst days of your life?" asked Mason, sounding as though he were slightly amused. "Trying to make him feel guilty?"

"No... he probably feels bad enough."

"If you say so," sighed Mason. "Where's the key?"

"It's with Avram. I even told him to wear it so that he wouldn't lose it," said Clarice, grinning, imagining how funny the old man would look with the locket around his neck. 

"I'll get it from him, then. When do you want it there?"

"Tomorrow," said Clarice stiffly, staring down at her ring again, her eyes stinging slightly. "I want mine, not... not my father's. And Mason...?"

"Yeah?"

"..Thank you," she whispered.

"No problem," he spoke softly before hanging up with a soft 'click'.

She turned the phone off and looked down at her left hand, where the large ring sat on her middle finger, adorned beautifully with many different precious stones, not only from saiyajin gems, but from jewels from around the galaxy. 

She smiled as she recognized the golden "R" engraved in the middle of it (surrounded by the gems).

She found herself staring at it constantly now, but she didn't know why...

"So what'd you want shipped over here?" asked Dryphus, glancing at Clarice as she drove slightly forward, cursing beneath her breath as the traffic jam only got worse.

"Just a little... goodbye present," sighed Clarice, letting her arm hang out of the door window.

Shrugging, Dryphus again cursed below her breath as the bumper-to-bumper traffic in the already over-crowded intersection got packed in even tighter, so that it was almost impossible for a car to move even an inch.

"Look," sighed Dryphus, turning to look at Clarice and leaning back into her chair, "if we try to go the regular way, we're _never_ going to get there. So can we-"

"And alarm the humans?" scoffed Clarice, jerking her head in the direction of the window, as if to point at the many people outside. 

"Oh, c'mon! This is crazy! We'll be stuck here for _days!!!_" 

Clarice "hmphed", but said nothing more. 

Dryphus, taking her silence for assent, put her palm against the dashboard of the car. Closing her eyes, her brows furrowed for a moment before the car disappeared completely from the scene, leaving the passengers of the cars around them only to wonder where they'd gone. 

Hey, guyz!! I'm sorry the chapter sucked, but I've used up all my writing fuel on school... So what was the sound that Goku and Chi-Chi heard? What did Clarice want shipped to earth? What's gonna happen between Bulma and Vegeta? Will Nazomi ever get to go one the adventure she's always wanted? Find out more in the next chapter of _DragonBallZ - The Legends of Chaos_

Read and Review!!! (I don't understand why I don't even have half as many reviews as I did the first time!!! Remember my cliff-hanger warning!!!) 


	14. Chapter Twelve: Secrets, Secrets

Chapter Twelve: Secrets, Secrets

A/N: Hey, guyz. I decided to write the chapters all together so that you guys wouldn't have to wait so long... and plus, I wanted to get to the good part of the story before long. I was getting impatient. ^_^ But in exchange, I want reviews!!! That's it, new rule - everybody leaves two reviews!!! MUAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

P.S. I'm sorry about the past couple of chapters, and the upcoming ones - they've sucked, I know, and that's why I'm counting on missy K-chan to help me out. If I could pay her for this, I would. ^_^ You go, gurl!

Nazomi bopped her head to the beat of her Ja Rule CD, a large, almost idiotic grin on her face as she drove toward Capsule Corps.

She finally put a stop to her head-bopping as a dull headache appeared, making her slightly dizzy. 

Finally arriving at her destination, she parked the car and pocketed the key. Walking up to the front door and still humming the song from the CD, Nazomi knocked on the door, her humming turning to a whistle. 

A few moments later the door was answered by Mrs. Briefs, who had her usual, cheerful smile on her face.

"Hello, dear!" she cried, giving Naomzi a hug. "Bra really wants to talk to you. She's in her room." 

"Thanks, Mrs. Briefs," grinned Naomzi, walking past her and heading up the stairs. 

She walked down the hallway, whistling again, and knocked gently on the door of Bra's room. 

For a moment, nothing happened; Naomzi prepared to knock again when the door flew open and Bra grabbed her by the shoulders, hauling her into the room. 

Bra slammed the door shut behind her and locked it, panting as though she'd run a decathlon. 

"Bra, what's-?!" began Nazomi before Bra slammed her hand over her mouth and held it there in an attempt to keep her quiet. 

She suddenly ran her in the direction of the walk-in closet and shoved her in, running in behind her and slamming the door.

"BRA, WHAT - Bra, what's going on?" whispered Nazomi, staring at Bra worriedly.

"It's Trunks," whispered Bra, looking afraid. 

"What? Why? What happened?" asked Nazomi, 

"Well... he hasn't been in the best mood lately," began Bra, Nazomi nodding in understanding, "And anything seems to piss him off. Well... yesterday... he had a date last night... and she was a real bitch that I knew awhile back... so we got into an argument... and she left... and he got mad..."

Nazomi gave a soft giggle and opened the door, peering out of it cautiously. 

"So... I'm guessing that he's after you?" she whispered, stepping out and walking over to the door.

"You got it," muttered Bra, leaning on the doorframe of the closet. 

"Well, like I said last time, I left my CD player in his room... maybe if I meet him in there I can calm him down."

Bra "hmphed", a small smile on her face. 

"You can try," she said mockingly, "but he was really pissed last night. I can't even leave this room without him trying to hunt me down."

"Whatever. I still need my CD player, so I gotta go over there anyway."

"Be careful, then," warned Bra as she walked back into the closet. 

Laughing beneath her breath, Nazomi walked swiftly to Trunks' room and knocked on the door. 

A few moments later, she knocked again, but still to no answer. 

"Trunks?" she called, frowning. "You in there?"

After another moment of silence, she shrugged and turned the door knob, opening it. She poked her head in, looking around. 

She spotted the door that led into the bathroom, which was slightly ajar. 

"Hey, dude, if you're not decent..." she trailed off for a moment, frowning.

__

'What the hell am I saying?' she thought, walking silently into the room. _'Even if he wasn't decent...' _

She walked over to the large, cluttered desk, ferreting around for the lost CD player.

She searched below a large tower of files, then a stack of papers that were in a complete state of disarray.

She sighed as she spotted the headphones beneath a large binder, upon which was the Capsule Corps. logo.

Carefully lifting the binder (as not to knock down the clashing mass of papers), she slowly removed the CD player, and sighed with relief as she set down the binder.

She turned on her heel and was walking out of the room when she spotted it; lying on the bedspread was a - well, something.

Her brows furrowed in curiosity, she turned to look at the bathroom door, making sure that Trunks wasn't coming out of it.

After a moment of hesitance, she resumed her approach to the bed and sat down, peering at the long, white "something", wondering at it.

It was long and white, and was mostly a cylinder shape, except for one end, which came to a round, almost coned shape. 

On the side of it was a large, red button, accompanied by a smaller, blue button beneath it.

Her inquisitiveness once again getting the best of her, she reached over to the strange item and picked it up, staring at the button.

__

'To press it, or not to press it? That is the question....'

She took a deep breath, then decided to go for it. Her index finger made it's way to the button and she hesitated for a moment before jabbing the button, a moment of fear flashing through her.

The "something" suddenly began vibrating frantically, causing Nazomi to gasp in surprise - and then horror.

Dropping the item on the floor, she ran out of the room (yet again forgetting the CD player) and made a mad dash for Bra's room, a strangled cry emitting from her throat. 

"Bra!" she cried, banging her fists on the locked door. "Lemme in, lemme in, lemme in...."

Bra finally opened the door, her eyes wide.

"What, did he come after you?"

"No, no, no, I have to talk to you, move, go-" cried Nazomi, shoving Bra through the large bedroom and back into the closet.

Bra turned to look at Nazomi, looking horrified. 

"Nazomi, calm down-"

"NOOOO, no, no, no, no, he's not right, he isn't right, he's weird, he is-"

Bra grabbed Nazomi by the shoulders and slapped her across the face as hard as she could, trying to calm her down.

"Nazomi! Shut up! Think!" she cried, shaking her roughly.

Nazomi stopped shouting for a moment, then calmed down. "Sorry," she whispered, settling down. "I was just freaking out there for a second." 

"Why?" asked Bra, deciding that it was safe to let go of Nazomi's shoulders.

"Well... remember when we used to make those jokes about Trunks being gay?" asked Nazomi, frowning.

"Uh-huh."

"Well..." Naozmi squirmed uncomfortably, then heaved a heavy sigh. "I think he actually is."

Bra's shoulders slumped, a look of annoyed disbelief on her face. 

"I just _told_ you that he got angry when I got rid of his date last night-"

"I know, I know, but... I found something in his room... I think it was a... um..."

"Spit it _out _already."

"I think it was a dildo."

Nazomi gasped and reeled backward, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open, as though she were worried that Bra would go berserk.

Bra looked thoughtful for a moment. She knew that Nazomi wouldn't lie, but...

"That's crazy," she said, smiling. "It must've been something else."

Nazomi stared at her, her face blank of all expression. 

'Maybe you're right," she said finally. "But if I'm right, I'm kicking your ass."

Bra laughed. "And if I'm right, _you_ have to do me one favor, whatever I want it to be."

"Alright," said Nazomi, and they shook hands, smiling.

"But what do we do if it _was_...?" asked Nazomi, biting her lip with one of her fangs.

"But what if what is what?"

Bra looked up, and Naozmi turned around; there was Trunks, his hands on the doorframe of the closet, blocking their only escape route.

"Hmph. You should know," she muttered to herself, and got up, walking around her to sit in a corner of the room-sized closet.

Trunks stared at her a moment, a frown on his face.

Deciding not to think about it, he turned to Bra, his frown turning into a horrid sneer.

"I still have to deal with you," he snarled, taking a step toward her. "What were you doing in my room?" 

Bra's eyes widened in confusion, then she relaxed, her shoulders slumping slightly.

"I wasn't i_n_ your room," she sneered back at him, putting her hands on her hips. "_Nazomi_ was looking for her CD player. Get your facts straight before coming and blaming me for stuff." 

He "hmphed" and turned to look at Nazomi, who was looking at him with a critical edge in her eyes. 

"Are you okay?" 

"Huh?" she asked, looking surprised. 

__

"Are. You. Oh. Kay?" repeated Trunks, enunciating each syllable loudly and clearly, looking worried.

She stared at him for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing, 

Clutching her stomach in pain, she continued laughing, and fell onto her side.

"What're you laughing at?" 

Nazomi finally calmed down, though she still had a giddy smile on her face.

"I'm gonna get to kick Bra's ass." 

Yes, I know, _very_ weird chapter, very _stupid_ chapter, but hey, I'm a weird and stupid person. So that's what ur gonna get.

Well... I'm gonna try to do better next time... but I guess it's so bad right now because my brain's still on Christmas vacation. And the part that isn't on vacation is being used for school. 

Well, the story will continue anyway, and I hope that people will keep reading and reviewing. 

~Valerie G.2-chan


	15. Chapter Thirteen: Girl Talk

Chapter Thirteen: Girl-Talk

Bulma sat, nursing her tea, a blank expression on her face. 

"Well... what'd she look like?" asked Chi-Chi, sitting down across from her and setting a plate of cookies on the table. Bulma had just come over to talk; and according to her, the woman she'd seen at the party had explained the past few weeks to her, revealing the answer to the mystery of Vegeta's nervous breakdown.

"Um.. tall, black hair, kinda muscular, not too much... whatever you think a female saiyajin would look like," sighed Bulma, letting her index finger trace around the rim of the cup as she stared into the tea, a red/orange reflection staring back up at her. 

Chi-Chi looked as though she were in deep thought for a moment as Bulma took a long sip of her tea, then Chi-Chi said with an air of smug confidence that didn't quite suit her, "I think I could take her."

Bulma choked into her tea as she burst out into laughter at Chi-Chi's sudden attitude spurt.

"Where did _that _come form?" she managed to cry as she continued to cough and sputter through her laughter. 

"I dunno," said Chi-Chi, smiling and shaking her head slowly from side to side. "I guess... this Clarice lady's story just reminded me of the old days."

"Yeah, me too," said Bulma, calming down, a sudden nostalgia coming over her. 

They both were quiet for a moment, then Bulma began the next topic of conversation - 

"So what am I supposed to do?" she asked desperately, pouting. Seeing the look of surprise on Chi-Chi's face, she further explained, "About Vegeta? I want to talk to him, but... he might be really angry with me..."

"Well, you have to try," comforted Chi-Chi, "I'm sure he wants you back just as much as you want to be with him." 

"Ah... maybe you're right..." sighed Bulma, stretching her arms out and then slouching into the chair. "But there's one problem."

"What?"

"I don't know where he is!" she cried, throwing her arms up into the air. 

"Oh, he's staying with Mercy and Piccolo," said Chi-Chi, shrugging. "But Mercy wasn't too enthusiastic about having to deal with him living there."

Bulma chuckled softly, grinning down at the table. 

"You really think that he wouldn't be too mad at me for blowing up in his face like that?" 

"I doubt it," frowned Chi-Chi. "I would've reacted the same way if I ever saw Goku kissing someone else, if not worse."

__

"Goku?" cried Bulma suddenly, gawking at Chi-Chi in horror. "Is that... is it even _possible?_"

Chi-Chi laughed, realizing what she'd said. "No, I guess not... he'd never cheat on me. He's just my loveable Teddy bear-"

There was suddenly a loud crash from the basement, where Goku had been after Bulma'd requested he leave so that she and Chi-Chi could talk. 

"SORRY!" bellowed his voice from the floor below them, sounding very muffled. 

Bulma turned to look back at Chi-Chi, her eyes wide with fear and sympathy.

Chi-Chi's head suddenly fell forward in exasperation before she lifted it up, her eyes flashing. 

"Excuse me for a moment," she muttered before easing her chair back and walking into the kitchen, grabbing a frying pan, and heading for the basement door.

Bulma frowned sadly, pity for Goku running through her. 

Reaching for a cookie, she braced herself and clenched her eyes shut as a loud _"CLANG!" _sounded from the basement.

Chi-Chi walked stiffly back into the kitchen a moment later, her face flushed with fading anger.

Setting the pan down on the counter, she walked back over to the table and sat down heavily, her lips thin and white.

Bulma reached for another cookie, bit into it, and chewed slowly, watching Chi-Chi with an unblinking stare. 

"So what'd he break?"

"A _really_ beautiful vase that I bought a couple of years back," sighed Chi-Chi, frowning deeply. 

Bulma smiled and continued to chew on her cookie, a million thoughts running through her mind at once. 

Chi-Chi, catching this, sighed. 

"You can just call him," she said simply, shrugging and taking a cookie. "...If you're afraid to talk to him face to face." 

"It's not that I'm _afraid _of him," said Bulma in a small, mousy voice, "I just think that he'd still be mad at me. He just likes to hold grudges."

Chi-Chi nodded, picking up her own tea and taking a sip of it. After that, she suddenly put her hand over her mouth politely and let out a long yawn, her mouth opening wide. 

"I think that he'll go easy on you," she said after a moment of thought. "But you have to give it a try. _He _probably thinks that _you're_ holding the grudge against him. _Somebody_ has to make the first move. And I'm getting tired, so you'd better get out of here and call him so that I can get to sleep."

Bulma laughed and looked back into her tea, her worries dwindling slightly.

"I guess you're right," she whispered. She suddenly stood up, causing Chi-Chi to stare at her.

She grabbed her by the shoulders, pulling her up and hugging her.

"Thank you C.C., Thank you!" cried Bulma, squeezing Chi-Chi's back a bit harder.

Chi-Chi laughed and let her arms encircle Bulma's back, her hands rubbing up and down gently.

"No problem," she smiled, pulling out of the hug, but still holding Bulma's upper-arms. "If you ever have any more problems, I'm here. Just make sure you don't keep me up until-" she glanced at her watch, then gasped - "eleven-thirty at night!" 

Bulma laughed and leaned in, kissing Chi-Chi on the cheek. 

"I promise that I won't next time," she laughed, hugging Chi-Chi again. 

She grabbed another cookie before waving goodbye and heading out to her car.

__

'Alright,' she thought to herself, starting the car and driving through the expansive field of trees. _'Time to bury the hatchet. As soon as I get home... I'm calling Vegeta.' _

Hey guyz, here's a question: has anyone noticed how cool these _"Thermasilk" _commercials are getting? First there was the one with the dragon, then there was the one with that magic girl floating and throwing all those cool multi-colored sparks around, and now there's the one with that "Greek Mythology" theme to it, where Medusa is dancing with the fire dude and the snakes turn into nice hair... ^_^ I was chatting with my gurl Hershey last night, and she said that there was another one with a dude throwing daggers.. I'm not sure about that one. I don't remember it. But anyway, kudos to the people at _Thermasilk_. 

~Valerie G.2-chan


	16. Chapter Fourteen: The Delivery

Chapter Fourteen: The Delivery

Fishing her house keys out of her purse, Bulma unlocked the front door and walked into the house, her mind set on finding the phone and calling Vegeta as soon as possible.

She was in a good mood - Vegeta _hadn't _cheated on her! She could get back together with him, they could be happy again (happy meaning always yelling at each other and arguing) and it would erase the gloom and silence that seemed to fill the house since the fight. 

* 

Clarice grinned as she tore the large, metal crate open, the purple light showing from within it filling her with energy.

"God," muttered Dryphus, who was filing her nails. "I really don't know why you'd be so willing to give that to them, it took you years to find it-"

"And I really never had a use for it, did I?"

"You don't have a use for the one your father found either," retorted Dryphus.

"I'm keeping that one for sentimental reasons."

Dryphus gave a loud snort, then watched Clarice as she lifted the large object that'd been contained in the metal box.

It was the "goodbye gift" she'd asked Mason to send to her - it'd arrived pretty quickly, to her delight; she didn't want to have to stay on the planet longer than she had to and get her comrades suspicious.

"People would kill _their own children _to have even _one _of those, you have two, and you're just giving one of them away. You're either crazy, insanely generous, or don't know the worth of that friggin' stone."

"Or _maybe_," said Clarice, apparently adding to Dryphus' list, "I just want to do something nice-"

__

"He should be doing something nice for _you!_" said Dryphus said, her face in a strange look of disgust. 'You don't owe him _anything_."

Clarice turned around, as though she were considering what Dryphus'd said. 

"I want them to have it. In case he gets home-sick."

Having made her point, she turned back to another large box, this one made of bronze. She lifted the large object, another wave of energy surging through her from the mere closeness of it, and set it gently into the box.

"So anyway," said Dryphus, resuming her nail filing, "Are you going to try and find the others?"

"No," sighed Clarice, taking a large, black object off of the table, which slightly resembled a VCR. The object was about the size of a couch cushion and had a large, glass circle in the middle of it. The front of it sloped downward, and on the diagonal panel was a red button, a yellow button, and a green button. 

"S'a shame," muttered Dryphus, shaking her head in mock sadness. 

Clarice gave a half-fake chuckle and set the black object in the bronze box beside the purple item (which was about the size of a large a mini-fridge, resulting in a _very_ big box).

"...I can't deliver this personally," said Clarice suddenly, frowning. "We have to go to the... what do humans call it...? Post office," she said, frowning. A look of disgust suddenly formed on her face. 

"Ooooh, that thing'll give 'em a hard time," said Dryphus, grinning. "I wonder how long it'll take to even _get_ to Vegeta."

Clarice's frown deepened. "That was just what I was thinking...." she whispered, shutting the box with a quiet _CLANG. _

Dryphus chuckled, shaking her head. "It's a sign," she began, taking out a tiny compact mirror and touching up her deep blue lipstick, "that you shouldn't go through with this."

"I don't give up that easily," muttered Clarice, throwing on her black leather jacket. "I can't deliver this personally, he'd make too much of a fuss about it... I'm going to have to do half of this by myself." 

Dryphus took her makeup bag out and put her lipstick back in it before taking out another small, compact mirror and refreshing her blush. "I had to say the same thing when I was with Bud."

Clarice laughed and shook her head, grabbing the box and picking it up as if it weighed about the same as a feather.

"These capsule things are nifty," she said suddenly, encapsulating the box. Even though it was about a thousandth of it's size, the box still weighed down the capsule.

Shrugging, she shoved it into her pocket and opened the circular door of the large ship, where it was hidden yet again in the jungle. 

"I'll be back in about an hour," said Clarice before leaping from the doorway and taking off into the night, the door rolling shut behind her.

Dryphus sighed and shook her head sadly. She stood up and stretched, a slight groan escaping her lips.

"Psycho," she whispered to herself, then sucked her teeth in disapproval.

Well, there ya go. It sucked, but it's leading you through the story, and that's all that matters.

~Valerie G.2-chan


	17. Chapter Fifteen: The Gift of Chaos

Chapter Sixteen: The Gift of Chaos

OMG.... This took soooooooo long to get out, didn't it? I am soooooo sorry.... but u guys know the deal w/ the computer getting screwed up. I'm sorry anyway. But I'm going to be writing the story all summer, so please be patient (Like u haven't already).

Vegeta walked through the house, as though he haden't seen it in ages. It was a relief to be back there since he and Bulma had made up the night before - he thought that if he had to spend one more day at Mercy's house, he'd go crazy because of her yelling. She was worse than Chi-Chi.

He sighed as he entered the large living room and sat down on the couch, closing his eyes and basking in the presence of his home. 

He wished that Bulma could have been there with him, but to everyone's surprise, Trunks had called an emergency meeting that he said had been "way overdue". Unfortunately, Bulma had to go with him (much to both their distress; he and Bulma had looked foreward to "making up" some more. 

Bra had gone shopping with Marron, so he was alone, which was both a good and a bad thing; he missed his family, but it was nice to be home alone; then they wouldn't be able to see the faint smiles that appeared periodically on his face as he walked around the house. 

His eyes rolled open in annoyance as the doorbell rang loudly, echoing through the house. He got with a slight grunt and walked to the front door, opening it just as the doorbell rang again. 

At the door stood a pimply-faced, red-headed boy with a large nose, who was wearing a brown uniform and a matching hat. The letters SPS were visible on his shirt.

"Well 'ello there, Sir!" cried the teenage boy, who had an extremely strong Scottish accent. "Are you...." - he looked down at his clipboard - "Vegeta?"

Vegeta gave an annoyed nod (which was more like a jerk of his head).

"Well then, I 'ave a capsulated package 'ere for you! A nice lady gave me an awfully big wad of cash-" he took a large group of twenties out of his pocket - "to go out of my and get this to you as soon as possible."

Vegeta frowned. Who would do that?

"Alls I need you to do is sign right 'ere... Wonderful! 'Ere you go! But be careful, the capsules a bit 'eavy... whatever's in there must be big, that's for sure."

The boy grinned and tipped his hat, then about-faced to his truck, which was the same brown color as his uniform. 

Vegeta "hmphed" and shut the door, walking back to the kitchen and opening the yellow envelope that contained the capsule. 

Narrowing his eyes, he decided to go into the ballroom (the boy was right - whatever it was, it _was_ big - at least the ballroom was empty). 

He walked slowly to the ballroom, staring down at the capsule the whole time. Who could be sending such a huge package to _him_? 

He turned to capsule over and gasped - a small mark was carved into the side of the capsule, which he recognized - it was Clarice's mark.

Once at the door of the ballroom, he pressed the large button, then pitched the capsule into the middle of the large room.

Alright, readers! Wha'd'ya think the present was? You'll have to stay tuned and find out! ^_^


	18. Chapter Sixteen: Emeralds are Forever

Chapter Seventeen: Emeralds are Forever 

Trunks heaved a heavy sigh as he collapsed into one of the chairs around the kitchen table. He lifted his hand and began to massage his temples roughly, trying to rid himself of his terrible headache. 

He and Bulma had just come back from one of the craziest meetings they had ever been to, mostly because of one person.

"We have to get rid of him," sighed Trunks, sitting up in his chair resting his forehead in his palm. 

"Who, George?" asked Bulma, half-laughing as she reached into the cabinet to get a canister of instant coffee.

"Of course George," said Trunks, glaring at his mother for being amused at his expense. "Who else?"

"Oh, don't be so hard on him," said Bulma, smiling. "He was just a bit over-excited. It was his first big meeting."

"_A bit over-excited?_" repeated Trunks in disbelief. "The guy was going berserk!!"

The man that they were speaking of, George Robinson, was a newly highered financial executive of Capsule Corps. Trunks had requested for him to be at the meeting to help them decide whether or not to fund a new merger project with a company called EarthSyte, Inc. 

But what Trunks hadn't been anticipating was George's so-called "excitement" - throughout the entire meeting, George had been screaming and interrupting statements both from Trunks and from the executives of EarthSyte until he was pink in the face, constantly waving papers around that he claimed had "all the facts and figures". 

"Give him another chance," said Bulma as she picked up the now whisteling kettle off of the stove and poored the boiling water into two large mugs. "Who knows, he might apologize for his behavior."

"And if he doesn't?"

"Get rid of him."

Trunks gave a short, quiet laugh and happily accepted the coffee that Bulma handed to him. She walked back to the fridge and took out a carton of Coffee Mates cream, pouring a small amount into her coffee. The only time she ever drank coffe black was when she was seriously stressed out, as Trunks was now.

Trunks suddenly looked up. 

"Where's Dad?" he asked, peering into the next room. "I haven't seen him much since he came back. Don't tell me he's already begun training again..."

"Kami, if he has...." said Bulma in a threatening voice, getting up. "I'll go look for him. I need to talk to him anyway." 

Bulma stalked out of the room, heading toward the back door, planning on checking the Gravity Room.

'I can't believe him,' she thought, scowling. _'He's only been back a little while, and already his mind is on nothing but training...' _

She continued walking, planning to scream herself hoarse at Vegeta, when something a strange light caught her attention from the ballroom.

'What the...?' she thought as she turned and began walking down the hallway to the ballroom. _'Oh, he better not have started ki blasting things in the house and set something on fire again...' _

Sighing with exasperation, she quickened her pace and made it to the wide door, ready to start screaming, when she shut her mouth in surprise.

Nothing was on fire, but a small, black object with a circular glass in the middle sat on the floor, emmitting a strange reddish glow. A large yellow button on the sloped panel of the object was blinking quickly, as though urging someone to press it.

As usual, her curiosity got the best of her. Her heart beating faster, she walked slowly over to the machine and knelt down, hesitantly reaching for the button.

'What if it's some type of bomb?' she thought suddenly. _'No, it isn't,' _said another part of her brain. _'Stop being such a pessimist.'_

Shaking off her sudden panic, she smiled and pushed the blinking button.

At first, nothing happened, but then a bright, white light shot up toward the ceiling. Bulma sheilded her eyes,squinting slightly, then lowered her hand as the light dimmed.

Her eyes widened when she saw a life-sized hologram of Clarice standing on the machine, except that she seemed to be in Super-Saiyajin form. Her hair was a golden-blonde color, and was tied back in a semi-ponytail. Her eyes had turned a deep red (rather than the green that the male saiyajins turned), and they shone brightly as the still hologram smiled.

Bulma stood up, surprised. She hadn't expected this at all. She looked down as a blue button began blinking on the bottom.

"Ah, what the hell," she thought aloud as she bent over and pushed the button, then stepped back and waited for something to happen.

Clarice's smile suddenly broadened. 

"Hello, Vegeta," she said warmly, now grinning. Her British-like accent seemed a bit dimmer now that it was just a recording. "I hope you like your present... I really didn't have any use for it. What's the point if I couldn't find the other five, right?" She gave a small laugh. "Unless the legend were true, but I know that you don't believe in it."

'Legend?' thought Bulma, frowning in confusion. _'What legend...?' _

"Think of it as a... severely belated wedding gift. I'm sure that Bulma will be able to use it for one of her inventions. And as for you, just look into it whenever you're feeling homesick. You may even be able to see the Ruins if you look deeply enough."

Bulma blinked. This was the first time in a long time that she'd ever been so lost. 

'Ruins?'

"Well, I'm off," said Clarice suddenly, snapping Bulma from her short reverie. "My time cartridge is almost filled. Tell everyone that I said goodbye, alright? And Bulma, if you're watching... you must be a very tough woman to put up with Vegeta. I'm happy for the two of you."

Clarice winked, then the hologram disappeared. The yellow button began blinkning again, just as it had been when Bulma had first walked in.

'Wait,' thought Bulma, her brow wrinkling, _'Vegeta must have already seen this.. so where's the present that Clarice was talking about...?' _

She looked around them room, then spotted a large, bronze box that she hadn't noticed when she had first walked in. 

She walked over to the box and was about to peer in when someone called her from the kitchen.

"MOM!" shouted Trunks. "DIDJA FIND HIM YET??" 

"NO!!" screamed Bulma, slightly annoyed. 

"WELL GOOD! 'CAUSE HE'S OVER HERE!!"

Yeah, I know. I havn't written in a while, so I'm a bit rusty. Sorry. And I haven't been in the best of moods lately. My dog died a few days ago, and I really miss her. I was sitting with her because she was really, really sick, and... I dunno. I just went into hysterics when she stopped breathing. So please bear with me. 

~Valerie G.


	19. Chapter Seventeen: Death Day

Chapter Eighteen: Death Day Deep within A dream, Clarice felt someone stroking her forehead. A gentle, soft touch, a cool hand upon her own fevered skin. She felt herself smile, enjoying the touch. She sighed and relaxed, wishing for whoever it was to continue forever. Suddenly the the dream shifted, and her forehead wrinkled. The touch was no longer soft and loving, but rough and rasping. No longer cool, but hot, burning her -- She woke up. It took her a second to realize that the silk sheet that she had been lying on had been clawed away and had that she'd been lying facedown on the mattress cover. One of her pillows lay on the floor, while the pillowcase had been torn off in the course of some nightmare and now hung from her chair. Clarice looked around the large chamber, but there were no signs of any other nocturnal damage. Her weapon cupboard of dressed pine was upright, the dull steel latch still closed, and her old practice sword hung in its scabbard on the back of the door. It seemed that every other piece of furniture was where it was supposed to be. It must have been a relatively good night. Sometimes, in her nightmare-laced sleep, Clarice walked, talked, and wreaked havoc. But always only in her room. Her precious room. She closed her eyes again and listened. All was silent, which meant that Avram and the rest of them weren't up and about yet. Clarice scrunched her eyes together more tightly and tried to go back to sleep. She wanted to regain the feel of that hand on her brow. That touch was the only thing she remembered of her mother. Not her face or her voice -- just the touch of her cool hand. She needed that touch desperately today. Today was the day that she had to report her failure to King Vegeta. Once she had thought of that, there was no hope for sleep. As on every other morning, Clarice gave up trying to keep her eyes shut. She let them spring open and stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes. But the stone had not changed overnight. It was still grey and cold, with tiny flecks of pink, the chandelier hanging in the center dully. She suddenly sat up and swung her legs over the side, a strange look upon her face. 'I'm going to die today,' she thought as she bit her lip, as though she had suddenly realized what she'd gotten into. Her eyes slid shut as a tear rolled down her cheek. Why was she doing this? Drpyhus had been right - she could have easily over-powered Vegeta and made him come back to the planet. Why hadn't she? She pulled the covers back around her and rolled herself up into a little ball, hugging her knees tightly to her chest. 'What have I done to deserve this?' she asked herself suddenly. "Well it's your fault," said another voice in the back of her mind. "I know," said the other voice, whining slightly. "But why...?" Both of the voices suddenly went quiet, as though they were thinking, as though each really couldn't figure out what had prompted Clarice to put her life on the line for Vegeta. He'd been terrible to her when they were younger. He owed this to her! She lay that way for nearly half an hour, trying to come up with a reason. What the hell was going on---? Clarice whimpered. Both of the voices suddenly gasped. "No," gasped both of the voices simultaneously. "It couldn't be...that's probably n-not the case, Clarice, I mean, c'mon..." "And what if it is?" said the other voice, sounding slightly scared. "Of course it isn't," said the tougher of the two vioce s defensivley, though it seemed a bit unsure. "Y-you're not goin' soft on me, are ya?" "No, but-" "Then the case is settled. She can't... she doesn't. It's final." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Dryphus sat back in her chair with her feet up on her desk as she filed her nails, chewing Sour-Apple bubble gum (her favorite kind) as she did so. She looked up as the door to her office creaked slowly open, revelaing a pale-faced, sniffly-nosed Mason. "Aww," said Dryphus, frowning with only slight concern. "Poor baby. What's wrong?" "Don't you know what today is?" asked Mason, closing the heavy wooden door behind him as he made his way slowly to a chair and let himself collapse into it. "What..? I --- OH! That, oh well... things happen, Mason. Build a bridge and get over it." Mason stared at Dryphus, absolutely astonished at her reaction. "Things happen?! Dryphus, Clarice is going to die! She's you're best friend, too! I think that you should be a little more concerned about this-!" "Shut up!" cried Dryphus, sitting up and slamming her palm down on the desk. "God, you're acting like a little kid." She exhaled heavily, then leaned back into her swivel chair and put her feet back on the desk, then brought the nail file back to her fingertips to discover, with horror - "God, I broke a nail!" she shrieked. She suddenlly sucked her teeth and sat upright again, swinging her legs beneath the desk and opening a large drawer, full of makeup items. "Damn," she hissed beneath her breath as she rummaged through the drawer, searching for her manicure set. Becoming impatient, she slammed the drawer shut, whimpering slightly. "Just what I fucking needed," muttered Dryphus beneath her breath, glaring at the newly shortened nail. She suddenly looked back up at Mason. "Oh, you still here?" Mason glared at her. "You honestly don't care, do you?" "Well yeah, I care, I mean I'll miss her, I guess, but... friends of mine have died before. It's nothing new..." She paused and tapped her fingers on the desk. She suddenly frowned. If Clarice died... Damn, she would miss her alot. "Hey, who knows, maybe King Vee won't kill her.." "Hmph," uttered Mason quietly, shaking his head slowly and frowning. "That'd be a miracle." "Well," said Dryphus, suddenly getting up and swinging her leather purse over her shoulder, "You know me... I'm the miracle worker!" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Clarice finally opened her eyes, which had been shut tightly as she lie in the bed, sobbing violently. It couldn't be. It had to be something else. She swallowed thickly and then slowly sat up, the down comforter falling from her face to her stomach. Well at least she wouldn't ever have to face him again. That had to be the best thing about this. Swallowing again, Clarice finally decided to get up and walked slowly to her walk-in closet, taking out a towel from a back shelf. She left her room and walked to the main baths, which anyone living with her could use. She had decided to come to the swimming pool-like bath-tub instead of her own bathroom because she needed to swim around - swimming always helped her to clear her head. Clarice reached the giant room and closed the double-doors behind her, not wanting to be disturbed. After undressing, she dived into the Olympic-sized bath-tub, enjoying the feeling of the cool water against her skin as it ebbed away the plague in her mind. She swam to the opposite side of the "pool", where there was a built-in waterfall which reached about twenty feet high. She sighed as she stood beneath the waterfall, letting it beat down on her, massaging her tense muscles. 'Last day of your life,' thought Clarice miserably. 'Might as well try to make the best of it.' I know, dumb chapter, but who cares. So what's Dryphus up to? Does she have a plan to get Clarice from getting killed? What was the present that Clarice gave to Vegeta & Bulma? (I really CANNOT believe that I still haven't answered that...) What's up with Clarice - what did she discover while she was thinking? (P.S The answer to that question is going to have a HUUUGE effect on the story, but you won't know what it is for a while...) ~Valerie G. 


	20. Chapter Eighteen: What A Mess!

Chapter Nineteen: What a Mess!

*Yeah, you can probably guess that I couldn't come up w/ a good name for this chapter.*

Clarice sighed and climbed up the stairs at the side of the pool, grabbing the towel she'd taken before and wrapping it around herself. She didn't want to get out of the water right away - she hadn't been in the water too long, had she? She blinked as she looked down at her wrinkly fingertips, which proved otherwise. Walking back to her bedroom (and tracking water all over the hallway floor, which Avram would probably have given her hell for if she were going to be alive later on), she headed toward her closet and wrapped another towel around her hair when something caught her eye.

From where it was sitting on her night stand, her phone blinked slowly. Who could have left her a messege this early in the morning?

Sighing, Clarice walked over to her bed and pushed a button on the phone before collapsing onto her back into the bed. 

"Hey, Reesey," said Dryphus' voice over the speaker. 

Clarice groaned.

"I'm gonna be borrowing your ship for a quick trip back to Earth, okay? I want take one more trip to the mall. I'll bring it back in one piece, I swear. I mean, I dunno if it should matter, since YOU might not even be in one piece when I get back" - Clarice sat up and glared at the phone - "but I'll do my best. Okayiloveyoubyebye!!!"

Clarice gave a small whimper, but nothing more. 'Why am I doing with this?' she thought, frowning. 'What's wrong with me?' 

Her ears twitched slightly as another messege began playing. 

"Commander Cho," said the voice of Lieutennant Chiad, one of the many people that Clarice despised. She fell back into her bed once more, sighing and closing her eyes, when something that the Lieutennant had said caught her attention. 

"...wants to see Prince Vegeta by tonight-"

She sat up and rewound the messege and played it again, not having caught all of it the first time. "The King is pleased with your work, but he is becoming impatient. The treaty with Byron Seven won't go through unless an authority figure is there to approve it, and his Highness won't be able to make it there tomorrow night. He wants to see Prince Vegeta by tonight to go over their plans."

Clarice suddenly became pale (well, paler than she was already) and sat, frozen, on the bed. No one besides Dryphus and Mason knew of her failure to bring the Prince back - for all everyone else knew, he was in his quarters at the palace, glad to be home. Her mind was spinning. What was she going to do? Of course, she'd known that she was going to be in trouble for failing the mission, but she'd had no idea that the Treaty was going to be in jeopardy... 

She bit her lip and stood up, headed back to her closet to get dressed, when a large, warm hand suddnely grabbed her arm. She gasped as he pulled her toward him and wrapped his arms around her, smiling the whole time.

"Hey there, pretty lady," he murmured, grinning as he leaned down and kissed her. Clarice only stood there, liking the kiss, wanting to keep kissing him. It was the only thing keeping her mind off of her own impending doom, but... she had too much to do. She had to fix the mess that she'd made. 

She whimpered slightly and pulled away from him, putting her hands on his shoulders to keep him at bay. 

"Barra, I'd love to stay here with you" - her shoulders slumped as he began kissing one of her hands - "but I have a bit of work to do before tonight-"

"It can wait," he whispered as he pulled her toward him again, this time kissing her neck. 

"Barra, that's enough!" she yelled, pushing him away from her. "I'm serious!"

Barra stared at her for a moment, then began pouting his lips and making a puppy dog face.

"But I have to go to Anexu tomorrow! I won't get to see you again for three weeks...!"

She stepped back as he tried to make a grab for her again. 

She turned and headed for her closet once more, barely noticing as Barra grabbed the towel that'd been wrapped around her and brought it to his nose, inhaling her scent deeply. 

He smiled as she walked away, but frowned as he sat on the edge of the large bed. 

What'd gotten Clarice so upset?

Wow, I'm taking a while to do this. And this has to be one of the most short/dumb-ass chapters I've ever written. I just wanna stretch it out to keep you in suspense for as long as possible. ^_^ So who's "Barra", you ask? I'll answer that question right now - he's Clarice's lover/boyfriend... whatever you want to call it. And Avram (and the "others" that I keep mentioning) - he's Clarice's main butler. The rest are just temporary maids/ butlers/gardeners/everything else that needs to be taken care of at Clarice's house. (You can probably imagine that a saiyajin would probably make a mess all the time. ^_^)


	21. Chapter Nineteen: Dryphus' Surprise

Chapter Twenty: Dryphus' Surprise *Y'all better remember that Clarice has a British accent! (U can tell I like British accents, huh? ^_^)* "Mistress Cho! Mistress Cho!" "Huh...?" "Clarice! Young lady, are you quite alright?" "Young... lady...?" Clarice shook her head and looked up at the old man, whose round glasses were slightly in danger off slipping of his nose as he leaned down and peered worriedly at her. Clarice smiled and pushed the glasses back up onto the bridge of his nose, a fondness in her eyes. "Young lady?" she repeated, the smile still there, though it wasn't her usual, full-hearted smile; it was more of a hollow, mildly amused smile that didn't seem to reach too deeply through her, as if it were only on the surface. "You havn't called me that in a long time, Avram." "Old habits die hard, M'Lady," said Avram, smiling down at her as she sat in the large, extremely soft brown leather arm chair, her feet up on the wooden table before her. 'I'm going to have to wax that table later,' he thought, looking over the dull table with a slight frown. He turned to watched Clarice for a moment as she stared into the flames that raged and crackled in the fire place to her left, seemingly hypnotized by it. She blinked and suddenly looked up at him, frowning. "Avram, what time is it?" Taking out the gold pocket watch that Clarice had given him for his birthday the year before, he merely glanced at the moving hands before replying, "Half past, eight, M'Lady." Clarice's eyes widened in disbleief. Vegeta's welcoming banquet would start at nine! Avram smiled as he read the expression on her face. "Don't worry, Clarice. I took the liberty of informing the others that you would be a bit late." "Thank you, old friend," sighed Clarice, leaning back into her chair and putting a hand over her mouth and staring back into the fire. Avram's smile turned to a frown as Clarice sat, completely still - so still that she hardly appeared to be breathing. He stood there for a moment, then turned and walked away, worried. He knew Clarice too well to ask what was wrong - she's only tell him that she was fine, only thinking. But something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The great Palace of Vejitasei was buzzing with activity. Always a busy place, now it seemed to swarm with slaves, all hurrying about their appointed tasks.Guests from all over the universe were already arriving to see the return of the Saiyjin Prince. 'I'm sorry to disappoint you all,' thought Clarice as she walked through the large hallway, headed for the Main Hall, where everyone was to assemble. She continued to walk through the halls, her subconcious guiding her to the Main Hall as her mind buried itself in deep thought. What was going to happen after she died? Would she be honored? Would she be killed on the spot, only to be forgotten and replaced by another person who could do the job better? You and me,   
We have no faces   
Soon our lives, they'll be erased   
Do you think they will remember?   
Or will we just be replaced?   
Oh, I wish that I could see   
How I wish that I could fly   
All the things that hang above me   
To a place where I can cry She frowned even more deeply as she passed by a group of people touring the castle. She still couldn't figure out why she was acting this way. "Well, we did find one possibility," said a timid voice in the back of her mind. "No," hissed the stronger voice, the more prideful voice. "I refuse to accept that that's why. It's just nostalgia." Clarice wiped her eyes roughly with the back of her leather-bound forearm, as though warning her eyes not to let loose the river of tears that wanted to flow down her face. She wanted to leave, to just fly away from the palace and go to.. anywhere. Just not here. So why can it be?   
No one hears because   
Echoes back at me   
No one's there   
To all these meaningless feelings   
I can't deal with in my life   
To all these greedy people   
Trying to feed on what is mine   
You've got to feel your hunger   
And stop fucking with my mind   
I know it's time to leave these places far behind   
Where was Mason? She'd talked to him earlier in the day, and he had seemed upset, but she hadn't heard from him since. And she hadn't seen Dryphus since she'd arrived on the planet a few days before. She felt so... Alone. You and me   
We have no faces   
They don't see us anymore   
Without love as they had promised   
And no faith for what's in store   
Oh I wish that I could see   
How I wish that I could fly   
All the things that hang above me   
To a place where I can cry She swallowed thickly as the gigantic doors of the main hall stood open, revelaing the beings inside. Thousands of authority figures from glaxies near and far had gathered in the room and had begun mingling. A variety of languages could be heard from outside the room, all of which Clarice understood (all members of the Royal Elite had to learn hundreds of languages to be able to communicate with other-wordly beings). She stopped for a minute, just watching the crowd. She wiped her eyes again, this time with her palm. Why was she just realizing all of these feelings now? It was as if she'd forgotten her own terrible past, the horror and pain she'd experienced. Where are all these feelings hiding?   
Dancing in and out my mind   
Burning up all that I long for   
Feeding me till my decline And it was all because of one man. Vegeta. 'He should be here right now.' Where are you?   
My soul is bleeding   
I am searching   
Am I blind?   
All alone and bound forever   
Trapped inside me all the time   
'What have I done?' Sighing, she raised her chin and arched her back slightly, standing completely erect and with pride, the way a saiyajin elite was supposed to. Taking in a deep breath and exhaling, she strode into the room. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The King saw her first, and as the crowd of aliens turned to see what had captured his attention, a sudden silence enveloped the room. She paused, awaiting the King's summons. Her bearing was almost queenly, neither shy nor bold. Added to this was a quiet assurance and dignity that could only come to those who knew their worth, and were aware of any admiration accorded it, and accept the homage without a trace of false modesty. But there was something that seemed to dent her pride, something that made her seem a bit self-deprecating... She walked forward as the King beckoned her forward with a wave of his hand, her heart beating rapidly. 'This is it.' She sighed and bowed slightly, one hand over her heart. She raised her head and looked up at King Vegeta, who was sitting at his throne, upon a staircase that led to a flat platform, holding the giant chair. Her eyes were feirce, an unsual defiance in them. She sighed, then began to speak. "Your majesty, I..." her tongue darted out to wet her dry lips as she breathed deeply. "I-I am ashamed to inform you that I... have failed. Prince Vegeta is-" "Right here," said a gruff voice. Clarice spun around to meet his dark eyes as he stepped into the room, her ears oblivious to the sudden buzz of talk as the guests began speaking excitedly. WOW!!! ^_^ This was a SUCKY chapter! Hopefully K-chan will have fixed it by the time that I post it up. So who was that? (DUH....) How did he get there? How will Clarice react? Why did he change his mind? Did Dryphus have something to do with it? Why am I asking so many questions that I already know the answer to? Find out in the next chapter of - - - Dragon Ball Z: The Legends of Chaos P.S. To anyone who was wondering, the song in there was "No One's There" by Korn, whom I *used* to think was an awesome band - I actually had mixed feelings about putting the lyrics into the chapter, though, because I think that they had said something about Hitler being cool - which I totally don't agree with. The man was a monster. I'm not Jewish or anything (actually, I'm black and I'm Catholic) but I simply despise racism of any type. I'm not really sure if that's what they said - the article that I was reading was in French, so I didn't understand it totally, but I think that was the main idea. If anyone that knows about this can clear this up for me and tell me what's going on, I'd really appreciate it. ~Valerie G. 


	22. Chapter Twenty:Welcome Back, Dear Prince

Chapter Twenty-One: Welcome Back, Dear Prince Clarice stared, open-mouthed, as Vegeta strode proudly forward, stopping a few feet ahead of her and bowing to his father. King Vegeta, a strange half-smirk, half-frown on his face, stood and made his way down the stairs, a threatening look in his eyes. It was quite obvious that he didn't like his son, and only needed him back to ensure that an heir was present to keep the throne within the Royal bloodline. He stood before his son, about six inches taller than he was, and held his hand out to greet him. Vegeta, a look of hatred and defiance in his own eyes, took his father's hand and shook it roughly, a strange urge to tear the arm off suddenly coming over him. He respected his father yes, but not because he wanted to - it was because he had to. He was forced to celebrate the saiyajin heritage and look up to all who controlled it. Clarice barely paid attention as King Vegeta began speaking to the crowd, his words alien in her mind, as though she had suddenly forgotten the language. How had Vegeta gotten back to the planet? There weren't any earth-made ships that were able to make the trip there, it was far too dangerous; and he had been so intent on staying with his family and friends on earth... what had changed his mind? Clarice suddenly snapped back to attention when she realised that the King was speaking to her. "I see that you have accomplished your mission," he muttered quietly as he stood beside her, his hands behind his back as he glared in his son's direction, who was mingling with the alien leaders. "I congratulate you." With that, he walked away, himself beginning to speak with the guests. Clarice, suddenly feeling dizzy, walked slowly to a table and sat down, totally unseen in the dark corner. She lowered her ki just in case anyone would come looking for her - she didn't need to be bombarded with questions by the guests at the moment. She had enough questions of her own. **"Hey, Reesey," said Dryphus' voice over the speaker. 

Clarice groaned.

"I'm gonna be borrowing your ship for a quick trip back to Earth, okay? I want take one more trip to the mall. I'll bring it back in one piece, I swear."** 

Clarice gasped. 'Dryphus.' She had to talk to her. "Psssst!" Clarice jumped slightly as she turned to see Mason kneeling beside her, grinning. A smile broke upon her face, which only widened as he stood up and hugged her. "I'm glad you're still here," he whispered, squeezing her more tightly.   
  
"So am I," said Clarice, laughing as she finally let go of him and wiped the corner of her eye with her thumb. "...Do you know where Dryphus is?" "Yeah," said Mason, seating himself across from her. The only illumination in the dark corner was a small candle in the center of the table. "But I don't think she wants to see you right now. She's not used to doing nice things for people. She might be embarrassed." Clarice smiled, then propped her elbow on the table and resting her chin on her palm. "I can't believe how much of an ass I've been lately. I don't know what made me act so strangely..." "Act strangely?" cried Mason in disbelief. "Hell, if I knew I was going to die, I'd be acting pretty wierd, too. Don't be so critical of yourself." "Yeah, I mean really, you can be such a bitch sometimes. It gets on my nerves." Clarice looked up, her eyes widening with surprise as Dryphus sat down beside her, smiling. "I thought you didn't want to see me," said Clarice finally, still smiling in suprise. "Yeah, well," said Dryphus with a shrug, grabbing the champagne bottle from the ice bucket it sat in near the edge of the table. She hummed as she popped the cork with her bare hands, then poored some of the champagne into her glass. "Some bubbly?" she asked, smiling as she reached across the table and took the glass that sat in front of Mason, pooring some of the drink into it and handing it back to him, then doing the same for Clarice. "To life," said Dryphus, smiling. "To life," repeated Clarice and Mason, grinning as they sipped the champagne - Dryphus, however, swallowed the drink all in one swig. She slammed the glass back down on the table with a loud "Woo!" and shook her head, causing her blonde hair to fly about her. She grinned as she began to refill her glass, humming some tune that she appeared to be making up on the spot. "Hmm, hmm , hm! hmm-hm, hm-hmhm-hmhm HMM!...." hummed Dryphus before taking another swig of champagne. "Dryphus," said Mason in a warning vioce, "it's champagne, not tequila. And you'd better not get drunk before the dinner. You'll just get into trouble." Dryphus frowned as she slowly set the glass back down. "You're right," she admitted, sighing. "I can always get drunk after." "That's the spirit," said Clarice, smiling. "...So how did you get Vegeta to change his mind about coming home?" "Oh, yeah! I can't believe that I was stupid enough to leave them in my office! They're probably waiting for me to come back-!" "Who?" asked Clarice, frowning. "Oh, V-" "Dryphus!" hissed Mason, his eyes wide. He stiffly shook his head no when Dryphus gave him a questioning look. Dryphus suddenly nodded as if in understanding and glanced nervously at Clarice, rising slowly out of her chair into a standing position, as though afraid that Clarice were going to pounce on her. "Wow, I'm.. uh.. tired," said Dryphus with an all too fake yawn, stretching her arms upward. "I'd better get home and go to sleep..." "Dryphus!" barked Clarice, now standing up and glaring at Dryphus. "Who's in your office?" Dryphus looked desperately at Mason for help. Mason only shrugged and took another sip of champagne, a "You're on your own, now," type of look on his face. Clarice, fed up with waiting for an answer, about-faced and strode quickly toward the double-doors of the Main Hall and turned left, walking quickly toward Dryphus' office, the heels of her boots creating a semi-loud echo, which was only over-powered by the talk of the guests who were touring the castle. "Clarice, come on, it's just some personal guests that I invited for Vegeta's home-coming, don't get mad, please..!" cried Dryphus as she jogged to catch up with Clarice quick stride. Clarice turned another corner and jogged up the stairs, the short chains hanging off of her her gold headband jingling as she did so. "Clarice, I swear, I wasn't going to let anything happen to them-!" Clarice suddenly stopped, turning to stare at Dryphus, a look of horror on her face. Her mouth opened slightly, as if she were going to scold Dryphus, but it suddenly closed as she made her way up the rest of the wide staircase, weaving her way around the people coming down the stairs. She'd figured out who Dryphus was talking about, but she couldn't believe it. She wouldn't believe it. Not until she saw them with her own eyes, anyway. Dryphus was known to be sort of an airhead, but she couldn't be that stupid. Could she...? 'So that's why he changed his mind,' thought Clarice, frowning. 'But why would he allow this to happen? He knows that if they get caught...' Clarice shook her head roughly, clearing her head as she finally reached the office. So who's in the office? Review and tell me who you think it is! Whoever guesses the right person/people earns three more chapters for the rest of the group! 


	23. Chapter 21: ForeWarned is ForeArmed

Alright. First and foremost, all of you - any of you that are still following the story, anyway - deserve a sever apology. I haven't updated in a while (obviously) and for that I apologize. I had these chapters done a while ago, but just didn't get around to posting them. But now that we're out for Winter Break (aka Christmas/Channuka/Kwanzaa Vacation), I'm going to set sime time away from shopping to bring the story up to the point where it should be. But there's one problem - my Dreamcast is broken. So for now, I'm going to have to go by the story by memory.   
  
Chapter Twenty-Three: Fore-warned is Fore-armed  
  
In case you don't understand the chapter name, it means that being warned about something before-hand gives you a defense against it when it actually does happen. Duh.  
  
She frowned slightly as she adjusted her ear-piece, then watched as her children did so. Was all of this really necessary? Were they really in that much danger?  
  
She looked to her left and cast a worried look toward Clarice, who was sitting on a table with her feet up in the seat of a chair.   
  
Clarice seemed fairly nervous - she had taken off the gold headband that she'd had on and was now gripping it so tightly that her already pale knuckles were turning white.   
  
Her face was expressionless, though she watched the three of them closely, her eyes narrowing every once in a while as they prepared themselves for what was to come.   
  
Bulma sighed and walked over to Clarice, who was completely still - she didn't even seem to take notice when she sat beside her on the table.   
  
It was only when Bulma began to speak that Clarice blinked and glanced quickly at her from the corner of her eye, but made no other movement.   
  
She sighed. "I really appreciate you doing this for us," said Bulma, frowning. "If I'd known that we'd put this many lives in danger, including our own, we never would have come here-"  
  
"It's not your fault," muttered Clarice suddenly, interrupting Bulma.   
  
Bulma opened her mouth to say something else, but Clarice shook her head to stop her before she begun. "It's not. You didn't know what was going to happen. Dryphus did."  
  
Bulma stared at Clarice, then down at the floor. Was she angry at Dryphus?   
  
Clarice suddenly stood and replaced her headband, the gold catching the light of the chandelier above and creating the appearance of a halo above her head.  
  
She cleared her throat, calling upon the attention of the others in the room.  
  
"We'd better get down to the Main Hall," she said, her voice serious. "The ceremony will begin soon."  
  
Clarice's eyes fluttered open and she inhaled deeply as consciousness captured her mind. She opened her eyes and didn't even flinch as the sunlight blasted her face, causing the pupils of her eyes to shrink dramatically.  
  
Rubbing her eyes with her fingers, she squinted as she looked around her bedroom.   
  
Breathing deeply, she stared down at her sheets, which were all white, as where her pajamas.  
  
She liked the color; it was a sign of purity, which contrasted the terrible planet she lived on.  
  
Though one might argue that she always wore black; a color which she liked just as much, if not more than white, since it reflected a part of her that only her worst enemies ever saw.  
  
Yawning, she threw the white down comforter off of her legs and swung them over the side of the bed, standing and stretching as her sleepiness finally began to subside.  
  
She turned to the window for a moment, where both suns - one red and smaller called Mobius, one orange and larger, called Ubillon - were slowly rising over the horizon, Mobius higher than Ubillon.  
  
Her eyes half-lidded, she turned and walked toward her door, grabbing a white robe and pulling her arms through it as she walked.  
  
She stopped short, however, as a strange sound met her ears. It was coming from a bedroom a few doors down from her own, and it sounded like...   
  
'Snoring.'  
  
Clarice frowned deeply, causing her to suddenly look much more old and grave than she actually was.  
  
Rubbing the back of her neck with her right hand, she walked over to the bedroom door and pushed it open with her left hand, to meet the sight of Dryphus, who was sleeping (of course), her body half-off of the bed.  
  
Shaking her head sadly, she shut the wooden door silently and continued walking down the hall, her mind beginning to recall the events of the night before.  
  
As expected, Dryphus had gotten drunk, the reason for her over-night stay at Clarice's home; but thankfully, besides Dryphus' horrid rendition of "It's Raining Men" while standing atop a table in the Main Hall, the night had gone off without a hitch; Bulma, Trunks, and Bra were staying at Clarice's castle-like home, not having been found out by any of the Royal Guards, and Vegeta was at his own home, the Royal Palace of Vejitasei.  
  
'Speaking of which...'  
  
Clarice turned and walked down a hall adjacent to the previous one, then opened another door, frowning as she found it empty, the bed made up. After checking the next two bedrooms, she found her prognosis to be correct; they had already woken up and were probably downstairs.   
  
Clarice paused for a moment at the top of the wide staircase and closed her eyes, opening them again as a voice interrupted her thoughts.  
  
"Hey! You still asleep?"  
  
Clarice growled beneath her breath as Bulma walked to the bottom of the stairs, grinning.   
  
Ever since the day before, when she discovered the truth about herself, she'd hated that woman.  
  
"Where are the others?" she spat.  
  
Bulma frowned at Clarice's sudden brusqueness. "What's the matter with you?"  
  
Becoming impatient, Clarice walked quickly down the stairs, her robe flying behind her, and turned toward the kitchen.  
  
Bulma's frown deepened as Clarice passed by her. Why was she in such a bad mood toward her?  
  
Deeply confused, Bulma turned and followed Clarice into the dining room, where Trunks and Bra watched as they passed by, and then into the restaurant-style kitchen.  
  
"Avram?" called Clarice, looking around, frustrated. The cooks turned to look at her, distracted from their work.  
  
"Yes, M'Lady?" she heard a voice call from behind her. She turned to see Avram heading quickly in her direction, a look of apprehension on his face. "You called?"  
  
"Yes, I-" she suddenly leaned toward him and began whispering quietly in his ear; Avram listened intently, then muttered something, the volume of his voice even lower than Clarice's.   
  
"What's going on here?" cried Bulma, frowning.   
  
Clarice nodded to Avram and then thanked him, squeezing his arm  
  
in appreciation.  
  
"Nothing," said Clarice, suddenly smiling.   
  
She walked around Avram and headed toward the dining room, where Trunks and Bra stared, wide-eyed, as she walked back into the room and leaned against a wall parallel to the table.   
  
"What was that about?" asked Bra, frowning. "..Ohmigod, did someone find out about us?! Are we gonna be killed-?-"  
  
"No," interrupted Clarice quietly, smiling. She crossed her arms and leaned slightly forward, still with her mysterious, Mona Lisa-like smile.   
  
Trunks shrugged and continued eating. Bulma, however, stood beside the table and glared at Clarice.  
  
"No, it wasn't nothing," she spat, her eyes wide. "You were freaking out. That was something."  
  
"I was only making sure that Avram hadn't accidently informed anyone of your true identities. He's a very intelligent person, just a bit forgetful at times. That's all it was."  
  
Bulma was about to continue her hounding of the woman, but something in her eyes and the finality of her voice told that she was telling the truth.  
  
Clarice continued to stare at Bulma, her gray eyes like silver bullets peircing through her.   
  
Bulma suddenly squirmed uncomfortably.   
  
Clarice's gaze was so...  
  
Probing.   
  
Bulma suddenly felt naked - it was as if Clarice could see right through her, know everything about her without having to ask a single question, tell if she was lying no matter how believably she was acting, know what type of person she was without knowing her at all.  
  
No wonder people were intimidated by her - it was that stare... that piercing stare...  
  
Suddenly shuddering, Bulma pulled out a chair and sat down at one side of the table, setting her elbows on the shiny wooden surface and resting her chin in her hands.  
  
She could still feel Clarice staring at her.  
  
A sudden fear swept through her.  
  
'Why is she staring at me? What does she want?'  
  
She rubbed the back of her neck nervously, now biting her lip.  
  
'Wait a minute,' thought Bulma, 'While we were on that ship heading here... Dryphus told us that Clarice was really loyal to the King... What if she's setting a trap for us to get caught?'  
  
She turned and gave a fake smile to Clarice, who smiled back her mysterious, "You'll never figure me out" Mona-Lisa smile.  
  
Clarice smiled as Bulma turned to grin at her.  
  
Fake. That was such a fake smile.  
  
Clarice, amused by Bulma's character, probed her even more.  
  
She still couldn't figure it out.  
  
Why her?  
  
The memory of the day before burned her brain - she finally knew the truth.  
  
()FLASHBACK()  
  
'What have I done to deserve this?' she asked herself suddenly.  
  
"Well it's your fault," said another voice in the back of her mind.   
  
"I know," said the other voice, whining slightly. "But why...?"  
  
Both of the voices suddenly went quiet, as though they were thinking, as though each really couldn't figure out what had prompted Clarice to put her life on the line for Vegeta. He'd been terrible to her when they were younger. He owed this to her!   
  
She lay that way for nearly half an hour, trying to come up with a reason. What the hell was going on---?  
  
Clarice whimpered.  
  
Both of the voices suddenly gasped.  
  
"No," gasped both of the voices simultaneously.  
  
"It couldn't be...that's probably n-not the case, Clarice, I mean, c'mon..."  
  
"And what if it is?" said the other voice, sounding slightly scared.  
  
"Of course it isn't," said the tougher of the two voices defensively, though it seemed a bit unsure. "Y-you're not goin' soft on me, are ya?"  
  
"No, but-"  
  
"Then the case is settled. She can't... she doesn't. It's final."   
  
()ENDOFFLASHBACK()  
  
Clarice frowned at the thought.  
  
She'd finally begun to convince herself that it was the truth. There was just no other explanation.  
  
No matter what she thought, something always told her differently.  
  
It was the truth.  
  
And it had already begun to affect her.  
  
Her attitude toward Bulma that morning had only been a tiny micro-sliver of how she felt toward the woman.  
  
And her hatred toward Bulma was only growing stronger with every moment.   
  
DUN-DUN-DUN.... Is Clarice really setting a trap for Bulma and the others to get caught? Why does Clarice hate Bulma? What is this thing that's affecting her? What does it have to do with Vegeta? Like I said before, the answer to that question is one of the main focuses of the story and will be the reason for the conclusion at the end. 


	24. Chapter 22: Back to Business

wChapter Twenty-Four: Back to Business  
  
Clarice stared through the hologram at the blue, slug-like, yet elegantly robed creature on the other side, her patience beginning to wane somewhat. Her elbows were propped up on the top of the desk that she sat behind, her fingers interlaced and supporting her chin.   
  
The creature jumped slightly as one of Clarice's crossed legs began to bounce up and down, the long, thin heel of her boot tapping against the floor.   
  
He looked at her face through the hologram between them to try and find an indication of why the sudden movement had begun, but her visage was blank, simply staring at him.  
  
Deciding that it would be in the best interest of staying alive to hurry, Majil's eyes re-focused themselves on the hologram. He hated having to deal with saiyans; not only were they cold and ruthless, they were always so damn impatient!  
  
Clarice turned her seat to face the gigantic window behind her and looked out longingly at the castle's flawlessly manicured grounds. It was mid-morning and both of the planet's suns were beaming spectacularly amongst the fluffy white clouds in the sky.  
  
She watched with envy as a flock of giant birds flew across the horizon, occasionally dipping down and splashing through the water of the ocean that lay beyond. She turned back to the desk, sighing; if she continued to stare out the window, she would risk serious depression.   
  
"Would you like to browse another glaxy?" asked Clarice boredly, causing him to jump again. He was relieved to see that she was no longer staring at him, but resting her cheek on one fist and checking the nails of the other hand, her eyes half-lidded.   
  
He shook his head as one of his three pudgy fingers reached up and poked the side of the hologram, causing the display to zoom to a different planet. A long list of facts floated down the side of the display beside the planet.   
  
"Bambara Twelve," began Clarice, somewhat monotonely. "As with all planets, this one has it's pros and cons." She reached up and poked another side of the hologram, causing the display to zoom in dramatically on the planet's landscape. Suddenly a beautiful, paradise-like vision appeared. The display changed every few moments, taking different views from around the planet.   
  
Majil gasped and leaned forward, observing the beautiful waterfalls, rainforests, and beaches with awe.  
  
"Obviously, the pros are that the species living there, as opposed to others, have learned to live in peace with their environment, and so the planet is completely unspoiled. The natural resources there are practically unlimited."  
  
Clarice sighed, then continued. "The only con, unfortunately, is that I don't belive your particular species could possibly survive there."   
  
"What?" asked Majil, tearing his eyes away from the display. "Why not?"  
  
"Well.. your species is quite a strange one," began Clarice, trying to phrase her words in a manner that would not insult the king of the Maari and begin an intergalactic war. Though the Maari were not very strong, they had many allies that were potentially dangerous to the Saiyans. The Saiyans also depended on the Maari in some areas of technolgy. "You do not adapt well to environments that vary too widely from your own, and well..."  
  
She pressed a button that brought her to the planetary databse, then brought up a magnified picture of one particular planet. She then split the screen so that pictures of both Bambara Twelve and the second planet were side-by-side.   
  
"You're planet's environment is much different." She motioned toward the display.  
  
Majil looked at the display to find that the second planet was his own. He frowned, causing his large, blue, bespeckaled face to to stretch unnaturally. His antennae drooped somewhat.  
  
"I see..." he said thoughtfully.   
  
Clarice nodded and sighed inwardly with relief. Though what she had said about the Maar's inability to adapt was true, she had also tried to discourage him from purchasing Bamabara Twelve because the Saiyans carried a small alliance with the inhabitants of the planet, the Bogar, and so they couldn't destroy them, which would have been standard procedure if Majil had decided to buy the planet. Thanks to their ability to work with a planet's ecosphere, they were the chief authority on Vejitasei when it cam to agriculture. This, however, put them under close scrutiny because of how closely they worked with the Saiyan food supply.   
  
Clarice was about to suggest a more hospitable planet when a panel in her desk raised, revealing a small, flat screen. She scowled as the face appeared. What now?   
  
"Commander, his majesty would like to see you."   
  
Clarice rolled her eyes, but nodded in response. The screen went blank and the panel sunk back down into the desk, where the edges merged with the surface seamlessly.   
  
"Please excuse me," said Clarice, a small, apologetic smile on her face. She pushed her chair out and stood up. "It seems that the King would like to speak to me. You may continue to browse through the directory until you've made a decision."   
  
Majil nodded and directed the display to another galaxy and began browsing the planets there.  
  
Clarice walked around her desk and headed toward the door, making sure not to touch Majil's robes, which flowed down from his chair and out into the middle of the marble floor, and making explicitly sure not to step in the trail of slime that the giant slug had left behind. She grabbed the doorknob and turned to give Majil one last look before walking out into the hallway and closing the door behind her.   
  
She walked briskly toward the large staircase to the castle's highest tower, glad to be out of the all-too boring presence of Majil, but still dreading what the King could possibly want.  
  
'I hope that it's not another assassination mission...' she thought, frowning deeply. She simply flew up the stairs, which was somewhat breaking the rules in the castle, but she didn't care. Sitting down for so long with almost no movement had caused her legs to fall asleep.   
  
Landing on the very edge of the top step to make it look as if she'd been walking in case anyone saw her, Clarice began walking the last few meters to the King's quarters. She turned a corner and faced the guards that stood on either side of the double doors. Without a word, they both leaned toward the middle of the doors and pulled them all the way open, then closed them behind Clarice as she walked inside.   
  
The massive space that was the King's quarters was somewhat dim, the thick, red drapes having been pulled over most of the tall, arched windows. Clarice walked toward one side of the room, the sound of her boots echoing on the stone floor.   
  
She walked passed one of the massive stone columns and was somewhat startled when a figure appeared on the other side of it.   
  
"A lot... has changed," he muttered, staring out of one of the few open windows.   
  
"Vegeta?" inquired Clarice, pleasantly surprised. She had thought that it was King Vegeta that had wanted to speak to her, not the Prince. She frowned when she realised that he seemed disappointed.   
  
"What? You expected us to freeze in time because you weren't here?" Clarice asked, crossing her arms.   
  
He looked up at her, a "Don't mess with me" look on his face. He crossed his arms as well as he leaned against the column, one foot on the ground and another propped up beneath him against the column.   
  
"Look," she began, looking down at the floor, "I'm sorry-"  
  
She became silent as a powerful ki filled the air. Vegeta tensed and looked up, lifting himself from the column and standing erectly. Clarice gave him a questioning look.   
  
::You mean it was your father who ordered me here?::  
  
Vegeta nodded.   
  
Scowling, Clarice uncrossed her arms and held her hands behind her back.  
  
King Vegeta walked into the room from the balcony, having just apparently flown in from another location. The bright double-sunlight behind him shrouding his face in shadow, causing him to look even more menacing than usual.   
  
The automated doors closed behind him, causing the room to darken once again.  
  
Both Vegeta and Clarice saluted him, putting their hands over their hearts and bowing their heads, though people of lesser rank would have had to kneel. The King nodded in greeting and turned to look out of a window adjacent to where they were standing, observing a construction project on another tower. He began speaking.   
  
"Commander, as you were told yesterday, I will be unable to attend the treaty proceedings with Byron Seven, and so the Prince will have to attend the ceremony and ultimately approve the document. My objective was to go over the plans with him yesterday, but as you know the festivities lasted longer than previously gathered." He paused to stare at her. "I would like you to inform him of the current situation so that he will be able to handle whatever arises." He turned to look at his son. Clarice could here a deep grumbling in his throat.   
  
"His transport will be ready at seven. Make sure that he's ready."  
  
With that, he turned and walked out of the room, his cape whipping about behind him. Clarice turned and looked at Vegeta, whose eyes were shut tightly. She could see the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching. She suddenly felt sorry for wishing the planet back; she could not have not known that the King would try to find his son, and suddenly memories of their bouts came rushing back to her. Even now, King Vegeta did not show any love, or even respect for his son, after not having seen him in decades. Through the entire conversation he hadn't even addressed him, as if he weren't there.  
  
"Vegeta, I'm-" Clarice's speech was cut short as Vegeta held his hand up to silence her.  
  
"Commander, I will go over the plans with you later on. I need to... leave."   
  
He left just as abruptly as his father did, though in the opposite direction. He walked to the balcony and took off into the air, a brilliant streak of gold following him.  
  
Sighing, Clarice turned and walked back through the double doors and rounded the corner, flying past the stairs once more.   
  
"Tsk tsk tsk... someone's being a bad girl..." came a voice from behind her. Clarice turned to see Dryphus standing in a divet between a statue and a column. She was suddenly reminded that Dryphus had the day off as she walked out into the middle of the hallway not in her official armor, but in plainclothes. "You know that flying inside the castle is against the rules unless it's an emergency."  
  
"What are you doing here? Don't you have the day off?" asked Clarice, plucking the collar of Dryphus' shirt playfully.   
  
"Yeah, but the humans-"  
  
"Only one of them is entirely human," corrected Clarice.  
  
"Fine," drawled Dryphus exaggeratedly, "The Earthlings-" -she paused to see whether or not Clarice would interrupt her again - "are starting to bother me. I need something to keep them busy."  
  
She stared at Clarice expectantly.   
  
Clarice thought for a moment, then said slowly, "You could take them to Station Square..."  
  
"Oh! Great, I can leave them there for the rest of the day-"  
  
She quieted as Clarice glared at her.   
  
"You can't leave them," said Clarice incredulously, as if it were obvious (which it was).   
  
"Look, I'll give them a phone or something, okay? They'll be safe with the S.S.A.S.S. around, anyway."  
  
"...At least show them around first so that they don't get lost," said Clrice, forwning,  
  
Dryphus nodded and looked around, as if having forgotten where she was. "So," she began again, "what were you doing up in the King's tower?"  
  
"He wanted to give me an assignment," sighed Clarice. "I'm to brief the Prince on the situation with Byron Seven." She paused, looking confused, then added as more of a question to herself than to Dryphus, "But I wonder why he would have me go all the way up to his office just to tell me that...."  
  
"Maybe he just wanted to see you," said Dryphus, shrugging. A smile threatened to form on her face as she battled to hold down the ascending muscles in her cheeks.   
  
Clarice glared at her. "He didn't just want to see me," she spat. "That's ridiculous!"  
  
Dryphus rolled her eyes and gave a loud sigh of exasperation.  
  
"Don't act so NAIVE, Clarice!" she cried in disbelief. "You know-" She dropped her voice to a whisper as Clarice "shushed" her loudly, reminding her that anyone could be listening to them - "You know that he wanted you to be Queen!"  
  
Clarice automatically averted her eyes to one of the arched windows, a scowl on her face.   
  
"I'd rather like to forget that, actually," she said quietly.   
  
DUN DUN DUN.... So what's this about King Vegeta wanting Clarice to be the Queen? How will the Briefs' fair in Station Square? (Ha, that rhymed. ) Is Vegeta mad at Clarice for wishing the planet back? Is that slug still in Clarice's office?   
  
Find out as we continue THE LEGENDS OF CHAOS!!!   
  
P.S.See how quickly this chapter came out? It was only a couple of days after the other one! (Believe me, usually, it would have taken like a week. ) This is mostly thanks to the MASSIVE amount of reviews from Majin Maljita, whom I CANNOT thank enough. Those reviews just hyped me up sooooooo much! Honestly, I was absolutely in shock when I came to FF.net and saw "57 Reviews" written beneath my story summary, when the last time it was only 38, so Thanks again, girl. Now everybody, follow her lead! You don't have to leave a review for EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER, but plz review as much as possible. It makes me feel so warm and fuzzy.   
  
P.P.S. I dunno if you guys would like to, but could you check out my other story, "Shiver"? I just want to know how much people are into it. There are like six chapters and only five reviews. I want to get like fifteen before I continue writing it. I would really appreciate it if you guys read it and left some reviews (and who knows, you might even end up liking it). Otherwise I think that I might take it down.   
  
Arigatou, Valerie 


	25. Chapter TwentyThree: Station Square

Chapter Twenty-Three: Station Square  
  
Hey, y'all - First and foremost, I have to apologize for taking so long to come out w/ this chapter (even though it was only about a week), but not only have I had a serisous bout of writer's block, but since my summer vacation started, I've been bombarded with chores and yardwork to do while my brother and sister mostly lounge around (rolls eyes) so I haven't had that much time to write. I think around next week I'll be a little less busy, so I'll try to write as much as possible.   
  
Dryphus landed lightly on the marble staircase at the prosterior of Clarice's home, looking out at the private beach as the ocean pulsed rythmically inward and outward. She was somewhat hyponotized by it for a moment before she came back to her senses and turned to walk across the roofed marble deck to the open double doors leading back into the house. She made her way through the castle and to the room where the Breifs' sat, their eyes glued to a Saiyan martial arts tournament on a 10x15 screen high up on the wall. Bulma and Bra cried out in horror as one Saiyan grabbed the other and forced him to kneel before him, then leaned down and tore out part of his neck with his teeth.  
  
"Nice," said Dryphus, grinning in approval.   
  
The others turned to look at her in surprise and disgust.  
  
"Nice?" cried Bulma incredulously. "You think that that was nice?"  
  
"Ah, stop whining," said Dryphus with a wave of her hand. "He could've done something much worse, trust me."   
  
Trunks, having had enough of the bloodbath, grabbed the remote and pressed the down button, changing the channel. He continued to press it as they passed tournament after tournament, until finally they came to a CNN-like news channel.   
  
A humanoid red alien sat behind an anchor's desk, it's strange, orange chair waving slightly as it spoke. Trunks noticed that the alien's speech did not match the movements of it's mouth and pointed this out to Dryphus.  
  
"It's an inter-galactic channel," said Dryphus, sitting on the arm of a chair. "It's dubbed over for each individual species. As you can imagine, everyone doesn't speak the same language."  
  
They nodded in understanding and turned to look back at the screen.   
  
"In other news, a treaty between Vejitasei and Byron Seven is to be made official tomorrow as the Saiyan Prince Vegeta (who's recent homecoming was celebrated last night at the royal palace) travels to the war-torn planet-"  
  
"What?!" cried Bulma, standing. "He's leaving? We haven't even had a chance to speak to him since we got here!"  
  
"Is he gonna be okay over there?" asked Bra, turning to Dryphus.   
  
"He'll be fine," said Dryphus simply. "As for you guys, I think that it's time to do some sight-seeing!"  
  
They looked at her questioningly.   
  
"Look, I'm supposed to baby-sit you guys, and make sure that no one finds you out and tries to hurt you," sighed Dryphus, crossing her arms. "But I'm not gonna be able to do that all day. There's a huge city called Station Square that was built entirely to cater to aliens visiting the planet, and I think you guys would have a good time."  
  
"But... is it safe?" asked Bulma, frowning. "I mean, if the place is full of aliens from other planets... I would think that Saiyans would be attacking the place all the time..."  
  
"No, the ASS will take care of you. The 'Alien Safety Squad'," she added when they stared at her in confusion. "They make sure that foreigners don't get hurt. It's really just to prevent an interplanetary incident from occuring."  
  
When they all seemed to understand, Dryphus stood and smiled. "Well, get whatever you need... purses, wallets, hats, jackets whatever... and let's go to Station Square!"  
  
Alrighty, let's get down to business. I have a few reviews to respond to...  
  
First of all "Hereld", I don't like your attitude. Usually I wouldn't mind if someone gave me a bad review, as long as it was constructive criticism - but your response was just ugly. What the hell do you mean, "OH how stupidly pathetic and cliched, surprise surprise a female author writes an 'orignal' female character whos stronger than all the characters. Yeah right."?   
  
1) First of all, that was not a typo, he actually mispelled "whose"   
  
2) Second, What the fuck is with the quotation marks around "original"? Have you seen Clarice in another story? If you have, it's either a huge coincidence or someone is stealing my story (in which case I'd have to kick their ass)  
  
3) Thirdly, Clarice is not that much stronger than the other characters... if you read the informatory chapter thing (which I am planning to take down) where it said that, I was honestly a little overzealous. It was put up a couple of years ago and I was just trying to create this idealic Saiyan hero, whether she was female or not. And besides, I also said in that same chapter that here was a REASON that she was so strong, but it was coming up later.   
  
4) What the fuck is your problem with women? I read stories all the time where guys create super-strong male characters (which there are already too many of on the show) and they get awesome reviews, and then you're gonna get on my ass because I and Clarice happen to be female? Goku's stronger than all the other characters and he's a guy! So you're saying that it's impossible for a woman to be anywhere near him? The entire show is based around strong guys, and I want to create one strong female, and you're upset? You wanna know what's REALLY cliched? Goku ALWAYS being the hero!  
  
Well let me tell you something, you miserable, misogynistic, just-jealous-'cause-you-can't-write-a-story-as-good-as-the-one-a-girl-wrote, shit-for-brains: Vegeta happens to MALE, if you hadn't noticed. So it would only make sense that he would have a relationship with a FEMALE in the past (well... maybe not for you, since you're into guys, right?) - so  
  
the main character in the story (Clarice) would have to be female. If it were the other way around, and Vegeta was female, then Clarice's character would have to have been male, and the storyline would have been just the same.   
  
So unless you can find a Princess Vegeta somewhere so that I can turn the story around and make everyone's gender the opposite, shut the hell up.   
  
WOO! Glad to have that out of my system. Now onto another review... I got one from CCFLeursdelys, and I really appreciate this review. It was really long and asked a lot of questions... I liked that a lot, because it meant that she was paying attention. I'll respond to her comments one by one...  
  
1) Lord, thank you for saying that it's one of the best you've ever read! I know that that can't be true, but thanks for saying it. That really gives me a boost of confidence.   
  
2) You read all of it at once? Geez, you must have a headache.   
  
3) Did you mean that you didn't do your homework? Schoolwork should come first, girl... the story will always be there, but you only have a limited amount of time to do homework!  
  
4) Oui, je peut parle francaise (mon mere et mon pere son Haitien, mais je suis Americaine - je nee a Boston) As you can see, I can't WRITE that well in French, but I speak it. You speak English very well, by the way. Much better than a lot of people that were born in the U.S. and have English as their first language.   
  
So thank you soooo much, CC, that really inspired me. Everyone else, review! Let's try and get it up to like 80 by next week!   
  
SlightlyInsane 


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